Responding strongly to the Election Commission’s reply to its complaints about “irregularities” in the Haryana Assembly elections, the Congress has accused the poll body of attacking the party and its leaders and threatened to take legal action for expunging such remarks if it continues to do so. 

In a strongly worded letter on Friday, the Congress said its communications to the Election Commission of India (ECI) are restricted to the issues and respect the office of the Chief Election Commissioner and the election commissioners but the poll body’s replies are written in a condescending tone. “If the current ECI’s goal is to strip itself of the last vestiges of neutrality, then it is doing a remarkable job at creating that impression,” the Congress wrote.

Replying to the Congress’ complaint on Tuesday, the Election Commission had criticised the party for making “baseless allegations when faced with inconvenient electoral outcomes” and cautioned it against making “unfounded and sensational complaints”. The poll body had also termed the allegations “irresponsible” and asked the party to take steps to curb a “tendency of frivolous complaints” while insisting that the electoral process in Haryana was flawless. 

The Congress, in its response, said it was not surprised that the Election Commission had given a clean chit to itself but said the “tone and tenor of the ECI’s response, the language used, and the allegations” made against the party compelled it to reply. 

The party said the Election Commission had raised the “exceptional” nature of engaging with it on the issues raised and said it seemed the poll body had forgotten that it was its duty to do so. 

‘Laced With Attacks’

“Second, the recent tone of the Commission’s communications to the INC is a matter that we refuse to take lightly anymore. Every reply from the ECI now seems to be laced with ad-hominem attacks on either individual leaders or the party itself. The INC’s communications confine themselves to issues and are written with a regard for the high office of the CEC and his brother Commissioners,” the letter, signed by nine senior leaders including KC Venugopal, Ashok Gehlot and Ajay Maken, stated. 

“However, the ECI’s reply are written in a tone that is condescending. If the current ECI’s goal is to strip itself of the last vestiges of neutrality, then it is doing a remarkable job at creating that impression. Judges who write decisions do not attack or demonise the party raising the issues. However, if the ECI persists then we shall have no choice but to seek legal recourse to expunge such remarks (a remedy with which the ECI is familiar since it unsuccessfully sought to do the same with a High Court’s unflattering but accurate observations after Covid),” it added.

The last comment was a reference to the Madras High Court castigating the Election Commission in 2021 and observing that the poll body allowing political parties to take out rallies and organise meetings had led to a surge in Covid cases. 

The Congress claimed that the Election Commission has almost always fought any move for transparency and that while its complaints on the Haryana poll process were specific, the poll body’s comments were “generic and focused on diminishing the complaints and the petitioners”.

‘Totally Unexpected’

When the counting for the Haryana elections was held on October 8, the BJP surged ahead after early leads for the Congress and ended up winning a record third straight term with 48 of the state’s 90 seats while the Congress got 37. The Congress had complained of an “unexplained slowdown” in updating results, which the Election Commission had dismissed.

Later that day, the Congress said it could not accept the verdict of the elections saying they were “totally unexpected, completely surprising and counter-intuitive”.

“What we have seen today in Haryana is a victory for manipulation, a victory for subverting the will of the people and it is a defeat for transparent, democratic processes. The chapter on Haryana is not complete,” senior leader Jairam Ramesh, who is also one of the signatories of Friday’s letter, had said.

Various factors, including drivers becoming trapped in their cars, poor planning by officials and extreme rainfall being exacerbated by climate change are all likely to have contributed. 

​Various factors, including drivers becoming trapped in their cars, poor planning by officials and extreme rainfall being exacerbated by climate change are all likely to have contributed.