Outgoing CEC is unfazed by criticism

New Delhi: As he demits office after having been at the helm for a little over a year, Chief Election Commissioner B B Tandon is unfazed by the strong Left parties criticism of his handling of the Office of Profit issue.

Nor is he perturbed by suggestions that he "hurried" with his decision to dispose of disqualification petition against Congress President Sonia Gandhi and to hold the Rae Bareili by-elections following her resignation.

"The Commission is transparent. We have not slowed down the process. We have not expedited it. It is taking a normal and judicial process," he said about the process to go into the disqualifications complaints several of them belonging to the Left parties including Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.

The Commission was only discharging its constitutional obligations, said Tandon, who would be succeeded by N Gopalaswami on Friday.

The Commission's action on the disqualification petitions against Chatterjee and nine other CPI-M MPs in seeking information from petitioner drew sharp criticism from CPI-M.

Asserting that the Commission was duty bound to carry out constitutional obligations if a disqualification petition against an MP or MLA was referred to it by the President or the state Governors, Tandon said "we have now started writing to the state governments to give information".

"All the office of profit petitions we have received against MPs and MLAs are under process and at various stages," he said adding, "all our actions on the issue is subject to judicial review".

Asked as to why he did not act on the demand by some political parties for removal of Election Commissioner Navin Chawla, he said that the President has not referred the issue and if it was referred to him he would have discharged his constitutonal obligations.

Now the matter was sub-judice, he said Observing that regardless of criticism, the Commission tried to perform its duties, Tandon said that the Commission's efforts on the office of profit issue should be "appreciated as we are so transparent".

On state funding of elections, an issue that has been referred by the Union Cabinet to the Commission, the CEC said that there was no consensus among political parties on the issue and the Commission has sent its recommendations to the government on Thursday.

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Noting that money power was playing a gigantic role in elections, he said partial funding of the elections was not a solution as there was lot of loopholes in the existing ceiling on expenditures by both political parties.

"There should be total transparency in the flow of funds to political parties and there should be ceiling on expenditures," he said.

Rejecting the idea of making the three-member poll panel into five-member body, Tandon said he was not aware of any such proposal.

The three member Commission was very effective and it should remain so. "I am not in favour of an increase in the number of the members in the Commission, he said.

To a question on why the Commission had acted in a hurry in holding the by-election to the Lok Sabha seat vacated by Congress President Sonia Gandhi in the wake of the office of profit controversy and termed the petition against her as infructuous, he said it was not only her petition but all the petitions which fell in that category had become infructuous.

"We have given our opinion and nobody has gone to the Supreme Court," he said noting that the Commission took into consideration all vacancies that were notified for holding bypolls Describing his five-year stint in the Commission as "challenging and satisfying, "Tandon said that he had given a proposal to the President suggesting constitution of a broad-based committee for making recommendations for appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioners.

The Commission was a totally independent body and its credibility has to be ensured, he said adding that he had suggested that a Committee comprising high political functionaries like the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition, Speaker, Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and a judge of the Supreme Court to select persons for the post of CEC and the ECs.

"Not at all" quipped Tandon when asked whether he has any plans to enter Parliament. He said he would enjoy his post-retirement period.