Full statement of Chief Election Commissioner on row over Ashok Lavasa’s dissent
Ashok Lavasa, who has recused himself from meetings where decisions pertaining to the model code of conduct are decided, wrote at least three letters to the CEC to accept his demand for including minority decisions in the poll body’s final orders.
Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora Saturday described as “unsavory” and “avoidable” reports that fellow commissioner Ashok Lavasa has decided to recuse himself from meetings related to model code violations till he is not allowed to record his dissent.
Here is the full text of the statement of Chief Election Commissioner of India
There has been an unsavory and avoidable controversy reported in sections of media today about the internal functioning of Election Commission of India in respect of handling Model Code of Conduct. This has come at a time when all the CEOs throughout the country and their teams are geared for Seventh and last Phase of poling which is tomorrow,m that is on 19th May, 2019 followed by the gigantic task of counting on 23.05.2019 ahead of EC. All of them and the senior officers of ECI HQ have been working their utmost during the last six phases of elections which barring an odd incidence here there have been largely been peaceful and conducted in a fair, free, and transparent manner.
The three members of ECI are not expected to template or clones of each other. There have been so many times in the past when there has been a vast diversion of views as it can be and should be. But the same largely remained within the confines of ECI after demission of office unless appearing much later in a book written by the concerned ECs/CECs. I have personally never shied away from a public debate whenever required but there is a time for everything. There was a reason, I said few days back in another leading daily that eloquence of silence is always difficult but far more desirable which is far to see the lection process through instead of creating ill-timed controversies.
It needs to be mentioned that in the last meeting of the Commission on 14.05.2019, it was unanimously decided that some groups shall be formed to deliberate the issues, which arose in the course of conduct of Lok Sabha elections of 2014. Out of the 13 issues/areas which were identified, Model Code of Conduct is one of them.
