The Hindu : National : BJP to take issue to President

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 08, 2006

National

National

BJP to take issue to President

Special Correspondent

To seek support of other parties

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party will petition Chief Election Commissioner B.B. Tandon to use his powers under Article 324 (5) of the Constitution and "recommend" to President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam that Election Commissioner Navin Chawla be dismissed.

Party general secretary and spokesperson Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday they would look for support from other Opposition parties in the issue.

Mr. Chawla said on Monday that the money for his trusts donated by MPs from their Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme had come well before he was appointed Election Commissioner and this had not affected his independent work as Election Commissioner in any way.

Chawla should quit: Sorabjee

PTI reports:

The former Attorney General, Soli J Sorabjee, suggested on Tuesday that Election Commissioner Mr. Chawla quit his post in the wake of reports that he had taken donations from Congress leaders for a family trust.

"Members of the Election Commission are like Caesar's wife, beyond suspicion. But Mr. Navin Chawla's past associations with a particular party may raise apprehensions about his impartiality [as Election Commissioner] and, therefore, in my opinion, he should put in his papers," Mr. Sorabjee said.

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