Tuesday, Mar 25, 2014

Kolkata: India’s Election Commission is likely to issue a notice to Bengali film star Deepak Adhikari, alias Dev, a Trinamool Congress candidate from West Bengal, for his controversial comments on comparing poll campaigning with rape.

This was conveyed to a joint delegation of several women’s organisations, which met Election Commissioner H.S. Brahma here on Tuesday and submitted a memorandum seeking the poll panel’s intervention and stringent action against Dev who is contesting from Ghatal constituency.

“Surely, action against such atrocious statements (falls) within the jurisdiction of the Election Commission. The election code for the conduct of political parties and candidates must include a specific clause that debars such statements,” the memorandum said.

Later, leaders of All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) and National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) said that the Commission responded to the complaint “positively”.

The poll panel assured the delegation that “a notice would be issued to the TMC candidate. They will also consider such statements as a violation of the Model Code of Conduct,” AIDWA General Secretary Jagmati Sangwan said.

The AIDWA statement said that besides issuing a notice to Dev, “it is also essential to issue a public warning to all political parties and candidates to desist from making sexist and misogynist statements and that any such statement will constitute a violation of the code of conduct.”

NFIW General Secretary Annie Raja said the model code should be reviewed to specifically incorporate sexist and anti-women remarks and recommended strict action against those responsible for making them.

An NFIW statement said the women leaders demanded that “the EC should not accept Dev’s candidature so that it will be the beginning of the end of all such sexist and anti-women comments by members of political parties.”

Dev though has apologised sighting his inexperience in public life. In a statement in social media, the actor turned politician said, “I am new to politics. My heart is clean. I did not want to offend anyone and I respect my mother, sister. Sincerely sorry.”

Meanwhile, veteran party leader Sougata Roy on Tuesday asked workers to rig polls in his Dum Dum constituency.

But Roy blamed for the media for misunderstanding of his comments. “I did not mean it as it has been interpreted by the media. There is no reason for us to rig polls considering the development the state government has undertaken in the constituency, also the work that I as a parliamentarian and our legislators have done in the area. I was just warning our party workers that Communist parties may resort to such tactics and we should be careful,” said Roy.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the Congress party has lodged an official complain to the election commission asking the poll panel to take immediate action.

Mohammad Salim of the CPI-M said, “We all respected Roy as he is an educated man, a college professor, but if he takes such stands then nothing is left to say.”

Om Prakash Mishra of the Congress accused TMC of following the route of CPI-M in conducting violence and rigging during poll. “TMC is just going the CPI-M way. Just to retain power, they will now do everything as they have also realised that people are going against them.”

Analysts believe that Roy is being nervous as he faces a tough battle.

“Last time he won with a slender margin — that too when TMC had a coalition with Congress party. In a four cornered fight, especially when the BJP candidate Tapan Sikdar is a former representative, constituencies like Dum Dum can be anybody’s guess,” said a political analyst.

TMC sources indicate that Roy was not at all willing to contest the polls from Dum Dum, but TMC chief Mamata Banerjee forced him to take the electoral battle.

— With inputs from PTI

By Archisman Dinda?Correspondent

Gulf News 2014. All rights reserved.