BJP Cannot Use Election Commission like Bihar To Win Karnataka: Hariprasad
He alleged that constitutional institutions were compromising their independence and said the BJP could not divert attention from questions about the Election Commission by targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi or demanding an apology from him
Bengaluru: Congress Karnataka unit president B K Hariprasad on Sunday said the BJP-led NDA could not replicate its Bihar electoral strategy in Karnataka with the Election Commission, and demanded that the poll panel address questions over its functioning.
"If they (BJP leaders) say they will win in Karnataka the way they did in Bihar, it is very clear that they will try to win by manipulating the umpire, the Election Commission. But that will not be possible in Karnataka," Hariprasad told reporters here.
He alleged that constitutional institutions were compromising their independence and said the BJP could not divert attention from questions about the Election Commission by targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi or demanding an apology from him.
"Senior lawyer Nani Palkhivala had said long ago that when constitutional institutions entrusted with protecting citizens' votes trade their independence for official favours, it is more dangerous than an open dictatorship. He had said that by hiding behind the seal of law, they were killing the Republic. When we say how starkly true that statement has become today, the BJP gets upset," Hariprasad said.
He said the Congress had raised serious questions about the Election Commission that, he claimed, could not be answered through "hashtags, slogans and shouting".
Hariprasad referred to objections raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi and demanded that the poll panel respond transparently to the issues raised.
"If you have the courage of truth, present the facts, investigate the allegations, and if the records are clean, every question should receive a transparent answer," he said, addressing Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The Congress leader hit out at Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar for seeking an apology from Rahul Gandhi over his criticism of the Election Commission.
"You cannot hide the issue by saying Rahul Gandhi should apologise. You cannot hide questions through shouting. You cannot hide one issue by bringing up another," Hariprasad said.
"When faced with strong questions in a democracy, targeting the person who raised the questions is not democracy," he added.
Hariprasad also alleged that Chandrasekhar's political record in Karnataka's Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections was tainted, and alleged that inducements were offered to legislators during the 2006 and 2012 Rajya Sabha elections.
He further questioned Chandrasekhar's membership of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and demanded an investigation into decisions taken by the committee during his tenure and any benefits he may have received.
"I demand that the decisions taken in the standing committee when he was there, and what benefits he received from them, should be thoroughly investigated and made public," he said.