Congress workers protest against alleged killing of a party worker in Murshidabad, in front of State Election Commission's office (Source: PTI)
On June 22, the CPI(M) moved a petition before the Calcutta High Court alleging that TMC candidate Mohinuddin Gazi filed his candidature for the 2023 West Bengal Panchayat Elections while in Saudi Arabia for Haj. Notably, the court had directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the allegations of tampering with nomination documents for the Panchayat Elections on June 21.
The CPI(M) alleged that Gazi, a resident of North 24 Parganas, filing his nominations for the Panchayat Elections while abroad is a significant blot on the process, as the candidate is needed to formally sign the nomination documents at the filing centre.
The CPI(M)’s counsel Shammin Ahmed said, “We demanded an investigation into the matter, noting that the said candidate Mohinuddin Gazi left India before June 8, when the process of the filing of nominations began. It would be practically impossible for a candidate to file his nomination when he left the country on June 4. It would also be impossible for him to know that the nominations were being filed, let alone sign the form. Importantly, the nomination papers are needed to be signed at the office concerned in front of the officer concerned.”
The counsel further submitted that the accused candidate has been in Saudi Arabia since June 4, according to a communique submitted to the Haj Committee. Furthermore, Gazi is supposed to be in Saudi till July 16, however, his nomination was submitted and accepted by the local officer. The petitioners further allege collusion between the Trinamool Congress, the State Election Commission, government officials and Panchayat Poll Returning Officers.
Calcutta High Court’s Justice Amrita Sharma heard the case. She said, “Some candidates are filing nominations without going (to the centre). Where is the candidate? What needs scrutiny? What are the officers doing?”
However, the defendant’s counsel Shirshanya Banerjee argued that no allegations of forgery of signatures were raised, thus, the officer assumed it to be genuine.
CBI to Probe Officials Tampering with Nomination Documents
On June 21, Justice Amrita Sinha heard a case against a Block Development Officer (BDO) for tampering with the nomination documents of two candidates. The court directed that the CBI should probe the case as it would not be prudent for the state investigation agency to probe the case.
The court directed the CBI to file a detailed report before the court by July 7, a day ahead of the Panchayat polls. Notably, the West Bengal government has challenged the single judge’s directions before a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court on June 22.
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