Why Were Two Sons of a Four-Time Trinamool MP Summoned for Hearing?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Election Commission of India summons family members of politicians for hearings.
- Concerns arise about electoral transparency in West Bengal.
- Political figures express frustration over the revision process.
- Historical context of political controversies within the state.
- Continued scrutiny of the electoral process is crucial for integrity.
Kolkata, Dec 27 (NationPress) The Election Commission of India (ECI) has summoned the two sons of four-time Trinamool Congress MP and the current Chief Whip in Lok Sabha, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, to appear for a hearing related to claims and objections concerning the draft voters' list, which commenced on Saturday.
Ghosh confirmed this development, alleging that it highlights the farce occurring in West Bengal under the guise of a revision exercise.
She also stated that both her sons received notices due to their names being absent from the draft voters' list released on December 16.
Moreover, Ghosh revealed that notices were issued to her mother and younger sister, requiring their presence at the hearing because their names were similarly omitted from the draft voters' list.
"Both my sons are government employees. Their late father, Sudarshan Ghosh Dastidar, served in the cabinet of West Bengal. I have represented Lok Sabha for four terms since 2009. Yet, they have been summoned for a hearing. This clearly illustrates the harassment happening in the name of SIR," she stated.
She further argued that her party has consistently maintained that such confusion is inevitable when a two-year task is forced into a mere two months.
This incident is not the first political controversy regarding notices sent to close relatives of elected Trinamool Congress representatives.
On Friday, a similar situation arose where the ECI summoned the mother, brother, and sister-in-law of Nabin Chandra Bag, a Trinamool Congress legislator from the Khandaghosh Assembly constituency in East Burdwan, for a hearing.
Bag alleged that his family members were notified despite their names appearing in the 2002 voters' list.
Bag has been a legislator from Khandaghosh since 2011 and was previously affiliated with CPI(M) until joining the Trinamool Congress before the 2016 West Bengal Assembly elections, after which he was elected twice as a ruling party candidate in 2016 and 2021.