EC's order on Navin Chawla likely on April 19

New Delhi, Apr 12: The Election Commission is likely to give its order on April 19 regarding the BJP's demand for the removal of Mr Navin Chawla, one of the Election Commissioners who was to hear the petition demanding its derecognition as a political party.

An assurance to this effect was given to representatives of the BJP and the Congress at the hearing of the three-member EC, which considered the issue in detail.

The EC asked both the parties to wait for its word on April 17 when it would intimate its decision whether there would be an order in this regard on April 19, BJP Spokesman Ravishankar Prasad and senior Congress leader and Union Minister Kapil Sibal said after the hearing.

While the Congress termed ''malafide and biased'' the BJP's objections to Mr Chawla's removal, the BJP said he could not hear the case seeking the party's derecognition as the majority of 205 MPs, who had petitioned against Mr Chawla, belonged to the saffron party.

Mr Prasad said ''Mr Chawla's hearing the case will be a copy-book case for reasonable case of bias.'' The BJP leaders had filed a writ petition before the Supreme Court as no action had been taken by the President and the Centre against Mr Chawla under Article 324 of the constitution.

''If the court accepts our contention, this constitutional process of removal of Mr Chawla as a member of the EC is likely to be initiated and under these circumstances he can't hear the petitions of the Congress, CPI-M, BSP and the Jan Morcha for the BJP's derecognition,'' the BJP Spokesman said.

While Mr Sibal claimed that the EC had indicated it might issue an ''Administrative Order'' on the controversial CD released by the BJP at Lucknow, the BJP Spokesman said there could be no such order as the EC had issued directions to file an FIR against his party leaders and the investigation was under process.

''It was only the prayer of the Congress. If at all there is any order it could be a general order concerning the holding of fair elections in Uttar Pradesh,'' Mr Prasad remarked.

He further said the BJP had made it clear time and again that it had not produced or authenticated the purported CD and it had been withdrawn even before the EC initiated action when the party noticed lapse at the lower level.

''There are two FIRs filed against BJP President Rajnath Singh.

Have there been any FIRs against Congress President Sonia Gandhi or RJD supremo and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad for the lapse committed by the cadre and for communalising elections by using Godhra carnage?'' the BJP Spokesman asked.

Mr Prasad alleged that the Congress was using the EC forum to garner votes in UP as it knew it has very little base in the state especially after the election results in Punjab, Uttarakhand and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

BJP Vice-President Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi alleged that the ''secular gang'', which was crying foul about the CD, was shamelessly manipulating the Muslim leadership to issue a 'fatwa' in their favour.

''The fatwa issued by the Maulana of Darul-Uloom had used 'unprintable words' (apashabd) against the BJP and the BJP will file a complaint against the misuse of religion in the elections,'' he said.

UNI