Vijay Rupani accuses Election Commission of helping Congress in 2012

Reacting to Congress’ charge that the Election Commission delayed the announcement of the Gujarat Assembly polls under Modi government’s “pressure”, the state’s CM Vijay Rupani on Sunday accused the opposition party of having influenced the panel’s declaration of state election dates in 2012.

“In 2012 (Assembly election), the Election Commission ensured at the behest of the Congress that the model code of conduct was in force for a record time to prevent Modiji from working, because of which the state government could not take up development work,” he said in Ahmedabad at an election programme organised by India TV, The Indian Express reported quoting a PTI report.

VS Sampath, responsible for the conduct of the state Assembly polls in 2012 as Chief Election Commissioner, called Rupani’s remark “unfair” and “uncharitable”.

Since Thursday, when the commission announced dates for elections in Himachal Pradesh but refrained from setting dates for Gujarat, it has been facing criticism that the delay in enforcement of the model code of conduct in Gujarat will give Prime Minister Narendra Modi the chance to announce sops for the state at his rally on October 16.

Being on a sticky wicket in the state, the BJP is already hurriedly clearing projects. The party-ruled Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, anticipating the model code on Thursday, advanced its standing committee meeting by more than an hour to clear proposals worth Rs 530 crore in just 10 minutes.

Elections for any states that are going to the polls within a few months of each other are usually announced at the same time, as per the Election Commission’s convention.

“We never interfered in the work of the Election Commission. Announcing poll dates is the commission’s prerogative, and it will do it at the appropriate time,” CM Rupani told India TV editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma.