Following the disqualification of 20 of its MlAs for holding office of profit, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has now targeted the newly appointed Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), OP Rawat, for allegedly being complicit in the ‘office of profit case’, thus raising serious doubt on his integrity.
The AAP’s charge came following the interview of Rawat in an English daily in which he stated that in the office of profit case the AAP had two opportunities to request the EC to hold hearings but the party didn’t.
The AAP levelled a spate of allegations on the new CEC is on the similar charge on his predecessor AK Joti, whom the party accused of acting in a biased approach at the bidding of BJP led Central Government by recommending the 20 party MlAs disqualified without even giving them a chance to be heard. On the top of that the President’s assent on EC’s recommendation came as a bolt in the blue for the AAP after the affected MlAs had petitioned Delhi High Court for justice.
Refuting the claims of Rawat, National Spokesperson of AAP Raghav Chadha said that party has written to the EC at-least two times for hearing in the case but in vain.
“OP Rawat who disassociated himself from the matter of AAP MlAs about two years back when allegations came to the fore that he has close family terms with some BJP leaders. The fact Rawat’s recusal from the hearing was, seen as “an admission of guilt” on his part pertaining to the
allegations that he was close to the BJP,” Chadha said. “His role is under a cloud of suspicion,” he said. Chadha also questioned the role of Election Commissioner Sunil Arora in the matter, claiming he was never involved in the case related to the AAP MlAs. “We never even saw him and now he is one of the signatories to the document recommending the disqualification of the MlAs,” he said.
The AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged that the EC “unilateral action” was in violation of all norms. Singh said President could not have shown the “minimum constitutional propriety” by meeting the MlAs before acting on the EC advice.
“MlAs of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bengal, Assam and Mizoram have not been disqualified despite their appointments being quashed by the high court”, Singh alleged.