LS polls: EC asks Cong's Ramesh to share details of claim on Shah calling up DMs before counting day
New Delhi, Jun 2: The Election Commission (EC) sought factual information from Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday on his claim that Home Minister Amit Shah has called up 150 district magistrates and collectors ahead of the June 4 counting of votes for the Lok Sabha polls.
In a letter to Ramesh, the poll panel has asked him to share details regarding his claim by 7 pm on Sunday.
The EC has referred to his post on X on June 1, in which the Congress general secretary had alleged that "the outgoing Home Minister has been calling up DMs/Collectors. So far, he has spoken to 150 of them. This is blatant and brazen intimidation, showing how desperate the BJP is...."
The process of counting votes is a sacred duty cast upon every returning officer and such public statements "tend to put an element of doubt and thus, deserves to be addressed in larger public interest", the EC has told Ramesh.
It has also told the Congress leader that when the Model Code of Conduct is in force, all officers are under the deemed deputation of the commission and they report directly to the poll watchdog for any directions.
"However, no DM has reported any such undue influence as alleged by you...," the EC's letter to Ramesh has stated.
"It is requested that details of 150 DMs to whom such calls have been allegedly made by the Home Minister along with the factual matrix/basis of your information are shared by 7 pm today -- June 2, 2024, so that appropriate action can be taken," it has told the Congress leader.
It has said that being a responsible, experienced and very senior leader of a national party, Ramesh must have made such a public statement ahead of the counting day on the basis of facts or information he believes to be true.
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Advocate found dead in car on Nainital court premises
Nainital (PTI): A 55-year-old advocate allegedly died by suicide after shooting himself inside his car at the Nainital district court parking lot here on Monday, police said.
According to the police, Puran Singh Bhakuni, a resident of Mallital, was found in the rear seat of his vehicle with a gunshot wound to his temple.
Police recovered a licensed pistol from his hand and a suicide note from the car’s dashboard. The note stated that Bhakuni was unwell and suffering from depression.
"We received information through lawyers around noon. The deceased was lying in the back seat with a pistol in his hand and blood near his ear," Circle Officer Anjana Negi said.
Forensic teams and ballistic experts reached the spot to collect evidence, as no witness reported hearing the gunshot.
Government counsel Sushil Sharma stated that Bhakuni left home at 9 am and was found dead at 9.30 am.
Sharma raised concerns over the circumstances, noting that the body was in the rear seat, and demanded a thorough probe to rule out foul play. Bhakuni, who worked as a notary, had married six months ago, he said.
Police took the body into custody and sent it for a postmortem to confirm the cause of death.
The forensic laboratory will examine the suicide note and the ballistics of the weapon, the police said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
