Congress alleges partisan behaviour by Election Commission

Following the assembly election results for five states, Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Monday demanded that the present Election Commission be disbanded, and its members probed for allegedly betraying the trust of voters. He said that the recent elections and the conduct of the Election Commission has raised serious concerns.

"The present Election Commission should be disbanded and actions of its members probed. The EC has disgraced itself and voters trust betrayed," Mr Sharma said.

He further demanded that a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court decide on the composition and qualifying criteria for the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner and the Commission.

"A Constitution bench of the Supreme Court should decide on the composition, qualifying criteria for the appointment of CEC and EC's and firm guidelines for the conduct of free and fair elections as per the Constitution," he said.

"Blatantly partisan, its actions in Bengal were shocking and condemnable. There have been instances where it acted as a willing accomplice of the BJP," he alleged while adding that the Commission violated its Constitutional mandate under Article 324 to conduct free and fair elections.

He also accused the EC of permitting mass rallies in violation of Covid protocol, exacerbating the Covid crisis in the country. The Trinamool Congress had also alleged partisan behaviour from the EC while the Madras High Court slammed its failure to impose COVID-19 protocols during the election process.