New Delhi:
The Prime Minister has had to smoothen the ruffled feathers of the Election Commission, after it complained to him about his law minister Salman Khurshid. The PM has reportedly assured the commission that no one can undermine its independent and constitutional status.
Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi today confirmed that he had written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about Mr Khurshid. While Mr Quraishi refused to give any other information, sources said he had complained to the PM a fortnight ago saying Mr Khurshid was trying to undermine the Election Commission when he said in an interview to NDTV that "every institution is under some control" while citing the poll panel as an example.
The Prime Minister, sources said, has replied saying no one can undermine the EC's independent and constitutional status. The PM reportedly told the commission that its "autonomy was never under question. If there are any apprehensions, it will be taken care of."
There has been a war of words between the Election Commission and the Law Minister in the past few days and now there is new conflict over memoranda of understanding (MoUs) that the commission signed with 11 countries. Mr Khurshid says as per government rules his ministry should have cleared these and has reportedly written to the commission asking why this was not done. Sources said the Election Commission, which had consulted the foreign office before signing the MoUs, is now drafting a reply.
Only yesterday, it was Mr Khurshid replying to the poll panel; he had to answer a show-cause notice issued by the Election Commission for a speech that promised a nine per cent sub-quota for minorities in Uttar Pradesh. In his reply Mr Khurshid has defended his speech saying that a minority quota exists in the Congress manifesto released in 2009 for the Lok Sabha polls and that he has only merely quoted the manifesto.
The minister is said to have told the poll panel that he only used the word "minority" and did not specify any caste or community so the statement does not directly violate any provisions in the poll code. "The actual election process has not started in Uttar Pradesh and that there is no declared candidate or party candidate so there is no violation of the model code; it was only a general statement given at the rally," he has reportedly added in his reply.
The commission's complaint to the PM, sources said, was about Mr Khurshid having said in an interview to NDTV last month that, "The administrative control of the government remains everywhere. You can't have a government within the country and not have control over everything that's happening in the country...Even in the Election Commission there is some extent of administrative control. When the election commissioner travels abroad, the file is signed by the Law Minister...Now, if somebody says it should not happen, so the only people you shouldn't trust in the country is the government that is elected by the people. It doesn't make much sense." The context then was Anna Hazare and his opposition to the Centre being unwilling to give up complete control over the Central Bureau of Investigation while framing a new Lokpal Bill.
The Election Commission took umbrage at Mr Khurshid using the example of the Election Commission, which is an autonomous constitutional body.