New Delhi: Congress on Saturday night avoided
commenting on the Election Commission's letter to President
Pratibha Patil seeking "immediate decisive" action against a
"defiant and aggressive" Law Minister Salman Khurshid for his
remarks on job quotas for minorities.
"We have not gone through the letter written by the EC to
the President. We will get back to you after we go through
it," Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi said here.
"Ask Salman," was the pithy remark of a senior Congress
leader when reached for comments on the poll authority's
unprecedented step against the Law Minister.
A number of phone calls and text messages to Khurshid
remained unanswered.
In a letter to the President, the Election Commission
said the defiance by a Union Minister of the Constitutional
body was "unprecedented" and his "improper and unlawful
action" has put a strain on the delicate balance of functions
between Constitutional authorities.
The strongly-worded two-page letter was written to the
President after an emergency meeting of the full Commission in
the wake of Khurshid's statement earlier in the day that he
would continue to pursue the line on nine per cent sub-quota
for minorities 'even if they hang me'.
The EC had earlier censured him for the same statement
made on January 8 while campaigning in Uttar Pradesh
elections, holding that it was violative of the Election Model
Code of Conduct.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, February 12, 2012, 00:32