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EC examining Verma's remarks daring poll body on sub-quota
Taking note of Union steel minister Beni Prasad Verma's remarks on minorities sub-quota and daring the poll body during a rally in Farrukhabad on Wednesday night, the Election Commission on Thursday started examining whether the utterances violated the model code of conduct.
Taking note of Union steel minister Beni Prasad Verma's remarks on minorities sub-quota and daring the poll body during a rally in Farrukhabad on Wednesday night, the Election Commission on Thursday started examining whether the utterances violated the model code of conduct.
The Commission, in its meeting, directed the chief electoral officer of Uttar Pradesh to provide it with a copy of the recorded speech of Verma made during an election rally in Kaimganj area of Farrukhabad.
Verma, while addressing the rally in the presence of Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh and Union law minister Salman Khurshid, had said "reservation for Muslims will be increased and if the EC wants, it can now issue a notice to me."
The EC started examining the matter earlier by obtaining the tapes of the minister's speech from a private news channel but the same were not very clearly audible.
"The Election Commission is examining the matter and asked the UP CEO to provide a copy of the recorded speech of the minister, " said an EC official in New Delhi.
Verma, in his speech, had also supported Khurshid, saying he was "honestly fighting for Muslims".
He said if Congress comes to power, then they would work for more reservation.
Khurshid had last week triggered a controversy by stating that he would continue to speak on nine per cent sub-quota for minorities even if the Election Commission "hangs me", drawing the poll body's unprecedented action of writing to President Pratibha Patil seeking her intervention for his alleged defiance.
The EC had on Wednesday put a lid on the standoff with Khurshid after he expressed regrets over his "defiance" of the poll body over his remarks on subquota for minorities.
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