BJP moves EC for action against Rahul for making 'baseless' allegations against Modi
New Delhi: The BJP Friday moved the Election Commission seeking action against Rahul Gandhi for his "abusive" and "completely untrue" comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing the Congress president of attributing words to the Supreme Court in the Rafale case that it never said.
Senior BJP leader and Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman also expressed her party's "disappointment" with the poll watchdog, saying it has looked the other way despite their repeated pleas to it against Gandhi for his "baseless" allegations against Modi.
A BJP delegation, including Sitharaman, Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and its media head Anil Baluni, submitted to the EC a memorandum in which the saffron party also accused the Trinamool Congress of poll rigging in West Bengal during the first phase polling of the general election on Thursday.
Pointing to Gandhi's remarks Wednesday that the apex court has acknowledged that Modi is a "thief" and that he gave Rs 30,000 crore to industrialist Anil Ambani, Naqvi said such "lies" and "baseless allegations" are not only violative of the Model Code of Conduct but also fall under "corrupt practices", as described in the Representation of People Act.
The court had never said such a thing, he said.
"Congress president Rahul Gandhi is using abusive and such strong statements which are totally untrue, calling repeatedly the prime minister a 'chor' (thief) and also putting words in the mouth of Supreme Court," Sitharaman told reporters.
Gandhi has been making such allegations without any evidence, she said, adding that the BJP has approached the EC three times so far against the Congress president.
The BJP felt "let down" that the EC has not taken cognizance of its complaints against him, she said.
Taking a dig at Gandhi, Naqvi said the "brand new president" of an old party like the Congress has crossed all boundaries with his utterances.
The apex court had on Wednesday allowed leaked documents to be relied upon by petitioners seeking review of its Rafale judgement and dismissed the government's preliminary objections claiming "privilege" over them.
Gandhi had then claimed that the court has accepted that Modi was a thief.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
