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The BJP approached the Election Commission on Monday complaining that the TMC has “hijacked democracy” in West Bengal and demanded deployment of central forces in all polling booths in the state.
Following reports of a clash between the ruling Trinamool Congress and BJP workers outside a booth in Asansol’s Barabani, and vandalism of the vehicle of Union Minister and sitting MP Babul Supriyo, a BJP delegation met top officials of the poll panel here.
Also read:West Bengal: Clashes disrupt polling, Babul Supriyo’s car vandalised
The delegation included Union Ministers Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Vijay Goel, and the party’s media in-charge Anil Baluni.
After meeting the poll panel officials, Naqvi told reporters, “The ruling Trinamool Congress workers have hijacked democracy in the state and are indulging in violence. They are being supported by the local machinery and we demand deployment of central forces in all polling booths in the state.”
‘Defamatory’ allegations by Congress
Naqvi also expressed concern over “no action” been taken against Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his “baseless allegations” against BJP chief Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and said a memorandum in this regard has been submitted to the Election Commission.
“We wish to invite the Commission’s attention to the repeated and persistent violations of the Model Code of Conduct by Rahul Gandhi, President of Indian National Congress. The specific instances of brazen, baseless, malicious and defamatory allegations against Narendra Modi and Amit Shah,” the BJP said in the memorandum.
Citing the various instances where Gandhi, in his public rallies, made baseless allegations against Modi and Shah, the BJP said these are just a few instances of the “brazen, blatant and utterly false and unverified and unsubstantiated allegations of Rahul Gandhi. There is a pattern and design and it continues unchecked and unabated.”
This should be of concern for the poll panel as Gandhi, “unabashedly and shamelessly spreads lies and tears the model code of conduct”, that the commission has put together as a set of basic rules of the game, Naqvi said.
The BJP also complained to the poll panel about the Madhya Pradesh chief secretary and the director general of police abut their “partisan attitude”.
For the latest on elections: Elections 2019
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