Former Union minister Kapil Sibal on Sunday accused Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar of being ‘biased’ towards the ruling camp in the recently-held Lok Sabha elections, and urged the Opposition to take some ‘action.’
“It is better to speak less of the Election Commission of India, especially the Chief Election Commissioner. His attitude has been biased. I think that the Opposition needs to act on it,” Sibal said in a conversation with ANI on Sunday.
On being asked if he was questioning the CEC’s impartiality, the Rajya Sabha MP mentioned how the Election Commission ‘does not even respond to the Opposition.’
“Everyone knows the reason. If notices are not served even to those individuals making statements that are against the Penal Code, and could lead to prosecution under several sections…the way there are differences between the votes polled and vote counted…all these are serious issues,” the ex-Congress leader stated.
“If elections are not conducted impartially through the specified structure, then our democracy is in danger,” he added.
The senior Supreme Court advocated further asserted that the opposition parties must discuss if ‘free and fair polls’ were possible under ‘partial’ constitutional institutions.
Sibal, however refused to wade into the controversy over the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) that has re-erupted in the wake of allegations of ‘malpractice’ at a counting centre for the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha constituency, where Shiv Sena’s Ravindra Waikar defeated Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) nominee Amol Kirtikar by a margin of only 48 votes.
The politician-lawyer, 75, pointed to the Supreme Court’s April verdict on the voting machines.
“When the Supreme Court asked us to trust our machines, and told us to trust the Election Commission,…if the Supreme Court itself is trusting them (ECI), why should I comment on them? If we start trusting the government, the machines, then all work should be done mechanically. Why do courts exist then? If we start trusting the government, then what is the use of giving verdicts?” Sibal said.
