CHANDIGARH May 3: An election petition challenging the election of Surender Singh, son of Haryana Chief Minister Bansi Lal from Bhiwani Lok Sabha seat has questioned the role of election commission which ``closed its eyes to the facts and sacrificed its impartialty''.The petition filed in Punjab and Haryana High Court by Ajay Singh Chautala son of Haryana Lok Dal leader Om Parkash Chautala, who lost the election alleged that Surender Singh adopted corrupt practices amounting to bribery.Demanding recount of votes in the constituency, the petition alleged bungling in counting process by the counting staff belonging to the local administration. They were named as Zile Singh, Nitya Nand, Hoshiar Singh, Bir Singh, Surjit Singh, Udhay Singh, Ram Purshotam Yadav, Prithvi Singh and Hari Singh.The petition, which will come up for hearing on May 25, alleged that Election Commission did not take notice of numerous complaints of irregularities pointed out by the petitioner during the election period simply because Chief Minister Bansi Lal had ``obliged'' Chief Election Commissioner Manohar Singh Gill.Bansi Lal obliged Gill by sanctioning Rs 28.47 lakh for treatment abroad for S.S. Brar, former Haryana DGP and brother-in-law of Gill and promoted Brar's son-in-law D.S. Dhesi as deputy principal secretary to the chief minister.The petition alleged that Surender Singh blatantly misused the officials and police officers in canvassing and threatening voters. Certain police officers accompanying Surender Singh threatened voters to implicate them in false cases if they did not vote for him, the petition said.The faulty transformers of 15 villages, mostly in the Satnali area, (where farmers launched agitation burning trains and railway stations), were changed despite their being defaulter in payment just to buy their votes, the petition alleged.The Election Commission approved the leave of Saroj Siwatch, daughter of Bansi Lal and Deputy Commissioner of Panchkula district to cast her vote in Bhiwani where she canvassed for her brother, the petition pointed out, adding that district election officer was not supposed to leave the station during election period. Besides, Siwatch is registered at two places - Bhiwani and Chandigarh against the election law, it added.
