Virbhadra meets CEC, offers explanation on code violation

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who is camping in Delhi since Wednesday, met Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami on Thursday...

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who is camping in Delhi since Wednesday, met Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami on Thursday and offered full support of the Government in conducting free, fair and smooth elections in the state.

The Chief Minister is also understood to have “personally” explained the matter of alleged model code violations. The Election Commission had served him a notice three days back. “I sent a detailed reply to the notice by fax from Shimla, before I left for Delhi on Wednesday morning. Today’s meeting was to discuss poll arrangements and rules relating to the code model code,” he said.

He said there were a few other pending administrative issues which were raised by him before the CEC.

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He was accused of interfering in the campaign and threatening officials in a report submitted by the EC observer for Kinnaur Assembly constituency to the Commission. The Chief Minister’s poll vehicle was impounded in Reckong Peo by the district police and two other government vehicles with beacon lights were challaned. The police had claimed that the candidate had not obtained prior permission of the authorities in the district to bring the vehicles to the constituency.

The Chief Minister had reportedly questioned Kinnaur DC Sudha Devi for not releasing the vehicles and causing delay in his plans. The observer in his report had said that the DC was threatened with “dire consequences and was told to behave properly”.

The Commission has already held a meeting with state’s chief secretary Ravi Dhingra and DGP Ashwani Kumar for taking steps to seal the state’s borders with adjoining states till the elections are held.

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