Virbhadra Singh questions EC's neutrality

Shimla, Jan 3 (UNI) Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today questioned the Election Commission's neutrality and claimed it had a bias attitude towards the ruling Congress government during the Assembly elections.

''While the Commission did not pay any heed to the Congress' complaints against the BJP, it acted on complaints made against them by the BJP,'' he asserted in an interview to Doordarshan here.

Mr Singh said while the Congress was for simultaneous polls in all the 68 Assembly constituencies, the poll panel ordered early elections in the state and created a constitutional crises whereby the state would have two assemblies had he not resigned from his post on moral grounds.

While the present tenure was to end by the beginning of March, what compelling circumstances egged the poll panel to announce early Assembly elections was beyond his comprehension, he added.

He said to avoid a similar constitutional crises in future the Parliament should legislate on this or the Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution more clearly.

The former Chief Minister said the Congress Party in this Assembly elections received about two per cent less votes as compared to the last Assembly elections and lost about 20 seats.

The BSP played a spoilsport in these elections, he added.

Ridiculing HPCC chief Viplove Thakur's statement that it was the state government that lost the elections and not the party, he said it was ''unjustified and unwarranted''.

''Both the party and the government had lost the elections, When the party loses how can a government remain in power,'' he questioned.

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