Congress, BJP reject Gill's views
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Aug 26 — Both major national parties, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress, today rejected the suggestion of the Chief Election Commissioner, Dr M.S. Gill, that the chief ministers of four states going for Assembly polls should step down before the elections.

The BJP dubbed the suggestion as ‘impractical’ while the Congress said it did not support or endorse the idea mooted by the CEC.

Dr Gill, in an interview to a news agency, had said the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Mizoram should voluntarily step down from the post for a six-week period in the run-up to the elections, due later this year.

The move will enable a neutral administration under a Governor to be in place during the elections, he said adding that Article 356 of the Constitution should be amended by Parliament to provide for an elected state government to move out of office once elections are announced so that the state can be placed under Governor’s rule.

The Congress spokesman, Mr Ajit Jogi, said the party felt that it cannot encourage any attempt to change or alter the basic structure of the Constitution.

"We do not support or endorse the suggestion of the Chief Election Commissioner,’’ he said.

The BJP Vice-President, Mr K.L. Sharma, told the mediapersons that in the absence of a law on this issue, such a suggestion would only lead to confusion before elections.

"The CEC should not make such off the cuff comments without discussing the subject with the government and political parties", Mr Sharma pointed out adding that such issues should be addressed jointly by the government , political parties and the Election Commission.

While the BJP has all along been advocating for such a law, Mr Sharma said "if any proposal on this issue comes forth, the party will consider it, but now it is impractical".

Welcoming the ordinance vesting statutory powers with the Chief Vigilance Commissioner, Mr Sharma said it was in contrast to what the then Prime Minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi had done in 1974 when corruption charges were admitted against her in a court of law.

At that time Mrs Gandhi, circumventing all the laws of the country, had passed an order that no petition could be filed against the Prime Minister in a court of law.

Mr Sharma said the BJP government, which is committed to provide a clean and stable government, has given statutory powers to the Chief Vigilance Commissioner. "We will expose all scams and scandals", he said adding that the government’s step was aimed at rooting out corruption.

With a view to counter the malicious propaganda of the Opposition against the BJP-led coalition, the BJP has decided to send 50 central leaders all over the country in September and October.