Leaders of various opposition parties today criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly violating the model code of conduct in Gujarat and also hit out at the Election Commission for not taking action against him.
Opposition leaders, including those from the Congress, NCP, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Samajwadi Party (SP), RJD, National Conference and the Left parties, met on the eve of the winter session of Parliament to discuss key issues to be raised in Parliament.
It was "indeed shocking" that the Election Commission had failed to uphold its constitutional mandate, the leaders said in a statement.
Instead of taking action for violations, the poll panel had allowed violations by the ruling party.
The Election Commission had been indulgent in allowing the prime minister to dedicate a submarine on the day of the poll, the statement read.
"This attitude of the EC has cast ominous shadow on the credibility of the EC and the integrity of the electoral process," the leaders said.
The opposition leaders also expressed their disappointment and "outrage" over the disqualification of Sharad Yadav and Anwar Ali from the Rajya Sabha.
It was a hasty move taken without following due process, they said, describing the decision as "unfair and unjust".
The meeting was held in the chamber of the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Amongst those who attended were NCP's Tariq Anwar, TMC's Derek O'Brien, NC's Farooq Abdullah, SP's Naresh Agrawal, RJD's Jaiprakash Narain Yadav and CPI's D Raja.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)