Bengal campaign curtailment: EC ‘mute spectator’ to poll code violations says Amit Shah, Mamata thunders 'it's EC gift to Modi'; 10 points

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: The EC ordered campaigning in nine West Bengal constituencies to end at 10 PM on Thursday night, a day before its scheduled deadline.

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: In the first such action in India's electoral history, the Election Commission on Wednesday cut short the campaign period in West Bengal in the wake of violence between BJP and Trinamool Congress workers in Kolkata on Tuesday.

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: In the first such action in India's electoral history, the Election Commission on Wednesday cut short the campaign period in West Bengal in the wake of violence between BJP and Trinamool Congress workers in Kolkata on Tuesday. The EC ordered campaigning in nine West Bengal constituencies to end at 10 PM on Thursday night, a day before its scheduled deadline. The EC invoked Article 324 of the Constitution to curtail the campaigning for the last phase of the election on May 19. The election in West Bengal has been marred by incidents of violence and targeted attacks on rival party candidates. Kolkata witnessed wide-spread violence during BJP president Amit Shah's massive roadshow in Kolkata. A bust of 19th century Bengali icon Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar was also vandalised during the violence While Amit Shah has blamed TMC for violence during his roadshow, TCM, on the other hand, has hit back claiming that BJP was itself behind the violence. Some sharp reactions came after the poll body took unprecedented steps. Here are some of the reactions by the leaders and their parties. 1) BJP chief Amit Shah on Wednesday blamed West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress for violence during his roadshow in Kolkata and accused the Election Commission of “double standards” for remaining a “mute spectator” to rigging and violation of the poll code in the state. 2) Shah rejected TMC’s allegation that BJP workers vandalised a bust of educationist and social reformer Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, claiming the regional party was behind it. 3) While attacking the Election Commission for curtailing the campaigning for the last phase of polls in West Bengal, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee said it is an "unprecedented, unconstitutional and unethical gift" to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by the poll panel. 4) She asserted that there is no such law and order problem in West Bengal that Article 324 can be clamped. She further said she had never seen this type of EC which is "full of RSS people". 5) The poll panel also ordered the removal of Principal Secretary (Home) Atri Bhattacharya and Additional Director General, CID, Rajiv Kumar from their postings in West Bengal. On this, Banerjee said the two officers were removed "not by the EC, but by Modi and Amit Shah". 6) While the Congress came down heavily on the EC saying it has been a "shameful fall for a once-independent constitutional body". 7) Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the use of Article 324 by the EC is an "unpardonable betrayal of the Constitution" as the poll body has failed to maintain a level-playing field. 8) Surjewala further alleged that the poll panel had failed to act on his party's complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah. 9) On the other hand, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel also raised questions over the EC's order, wondering if the poll panel is "waiting for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to complete his public meetings" there. 10) Reacting to the development, Patel tweeted, "If situation in Bengal is so severe that campaigning must be stopped, why is EC waiting until tomorrow? Is it because PM has scheduled rallies tomorrow?" "Isn't it unprecedented that EC claims it's an unprecedented situation in West Bengal but yet is waiting for PM to complete his public meetings?" he said in another tweet. The violence apparently began after suspected TMC supporters hurled stones at the BJP convoy from inside the hostel of Vidyasagar College. Furious BJP workers retaliated, and during the clash a bust of polymath-social reformer Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar inside the campus was damaged. (With inputs from PTI)