CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby wrote to INDIA bloc and other opposition leaders seeking a meeting and later spoke to Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee. According to the sources, Banerjee agreed that the developments called for coordinated action, bringing the TMC and its West Bengal rival, the CPI(M), together on the Election Commission issue.
The CPI(M), CPI and CPI(ML)-Liberation have demanded that the SIR be halted immediately, and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar be removed. The Congress has also intensified its criticism of Kumar, with its Working Committee scheduled to meet on 29 September to decide its approach.
Opposition parties are preparing a fresh notice seeking Kumar’s removal, sources said. Legal experts are expected to examine it before its proposed submission in both Houses of Parliament. If submitted, it would be the opposition’s third such attempt.
The Election Commission has said that differences of opinion are a normal part of its internal deliberations. It maintains that its orders have legal sanction and follow statutory procedures.
The latest discussions follow a joint approach to the Chief Justice of India by 23 political parties and an Independent MP over the SIR and other election-related concerns.
With PTI inputs
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