Date:28/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/28/stories/2008112856390400.htm

New Delhi

Congress and BJP complain to EC against each other

Staff Reporter

Issues range from inclusion of bogus voters to misuse of official machinery

‘Punjab Ministers in four constituencies created fear and panic among the people’
‘Congress started a campaign to include forged and duplicate votes in the voters’ list’

NEW DELHI: As is their wont ahead of most elections, the Congress and the BJP on Thursday traded charges over issues ranging from inclusion of bogus voters to misuse of official machinery and have complained to the Election Commission about the same.

Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president J. P. Agarwal has complained to the Election Commission that the BJP candidates supported by the Akali Dal in three Assembly constituencies of Delhi -- Jangpura, Shahdara and Adarsh Nagar – and the Akali Dal candidate in Rajouri Garden were responsible for violation of the election code of conduct.

Mr. Agarwal has stated that the Punjab Government had sent its Ministers and the Punjab Police to Delhi creating an atmosphere of panic and coercion in these four constituencies. He said it was surprising that there was no mention of the Punjab Ministers in the list of 40 speakers sent by the BJP to the Election Commission for campaigning in Delhi. The Punjab Ministers, he added, had campaigned in the four constituencies and in doing so had created “fear and panic” among the people.

The Congress leader also said that three days ago a huge quantity of liquor bottles was seized from supporters of the BJP candidate from Jangpura following which an FIR had been lodged with the police. He urged the Election Commission to initiate action against the BJP and the Akali Dal for violating the election code of conduct to ensure peaceful voting on Saturday.

For its part, the BJP had complained to the Election Commission that the Congress had started a campaign to include forged and duplicate votes in the voters’ list on a large scale. It has stated that in a survey of voters in the Uttam Nagar Assembly constituency it was found that 2,230 votes were forged. “A complaint in this regard has been lodged with the Election Commission, the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi and the Returning Officer of Uttam Nagar Assembly constituency,” party spokesperson Mewa Ram Arya said.

The list of forged names, he said, had been sent in a CD and the election in-charge of Uttam Nagar had also filed a complaint in writing to the Returning Officer as also with the Delhi police.Similarly, Mr. Arya charged that the MLA and Congress candidate from Nangloi Jat, Bijender Singh, had got duplicate and forged votes included on a large scale by misusing his position. “More than 4,000 forged or duplicate voters have been found in this Assembly constituency and a complaint in this regard has been sent to the Election Commissioner and Chief Electoral Officer,” he added.