New Delhi: Presidential candidate PA Sangma’s team on Monday gave documents to the Election Commission to prove alleged lapses by rival candidate Pranab Mukherjee while filing papers for the July 19 poll. The government debunked it saying there was no merit in the plea.
Sangma, supported by the BJP, last week demanded that Mukherjee’s nomination be rejected as he was allegedly holding an office of profit as chairman of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) when he filed his papers June 28. Mukherjee has refuted the charge.
A set of 180 pages were given to the poll panel by Sangma’s team. These included an opinion from a handwriting expert which said that the signature on Mukherjee’s resignation letter from the Indian Statistical Institute seemed forged.
“On Saturday we had registered our complaint with the Election Commission. They asked for documents, so we submitted them,” said Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy.
“In my opinion, Mukherjee should withdraw from the presidential poll on moral grounds and let Sangma win unopposed,” he said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said the opposition parties should utilise their energies for a better purpose. “They should utilise their energies for a better purpose…Pranab Mukherjee did not hold any office of profit on the day of his filing nomination,” he told reporters. (IANS)