Congress seeks EC, President's intervention

On the eve of the trial of strength of the Naveen Patnaik government in Orissa, the Congress sought the Election Commission and President's intervention to stop it, claiming it was violative of the Model Code of Conduct.

On the eve of the trial of strength of the Naveen Patnaik government in Orissa, the Congress on Tuesday sought the Election Commission and President's intervention to stop it, claiming it was violative of the Model Code of Conduct.

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"When the general election date has been announced and the code of conduct enforced there is no necessity to call the assembly and give an opportunity to the state government to prove its strength," Campaign Committee chairman of the state Congress Srikanta Jena said in a statement.

"We appeal to the Election Commission and the President of India to intervene immediately," he said.

"This is in violation of the code of conduct as it is likely to influence the voters' mind," he said and demanded immediate resignation of the chief minister in view of withdrawal of support by the BJP.

He alleged that a minority government was trying to get a certificate indirectly to prove its legitimacy through 'horse trading' for utilising officials and government machinery for elections.