TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar finally relented
over Alina induction issue and decided to go with the Election Commission
advisory to defer his plan to fill a vacancy in his cabinet until the Model
Code of Conduct is lifted.
On receipt of a letter from Election Commission of India
(ECI), the Chief Minister told media on Tuesday here that it has been decided
not to swear in any minister until the code of conduct is lifted.
He said, he has put his plan on hold to reciprocate high
values of electoral process. “I surrender before moral authority of the ECI,”
said the Chief Minister even as he claimed that it is his Constitutional right
to induct a minister in his cabinet as provided under Article 164 of the
Constitution.
“It has respected my fundamental right and I will respect
its moral right,” said the Chief Minister while citing a letter of the ECI
where the Commission has stated that it respects the Constitutional Right of
the Chief Minister to constitute his cabinet at any time.
The letter dated May 7, however also stated that “In view
of the Model Code of Conduct being in force, and the widely prevalent
perception that a prospective candidate is sought to be inducted, the said
advisory has been issued by the ECI to ensure that a level playing field is
maintained, in keeping with the spirit of the code.
The ECI also cited Supreme Court ruling in Union of India
Vs Harbans Singh Jalal and others to reiterate its point that the Model Code of
Conduct comes into operation from the date of announcement of the election
schedule by the Election Commission.
The statutory election process for Cortalim by-polls
begins with effect from May 9 while election code of conduct came into force
from April 24.
The Chief Minister said he has discussed the issue with
Alina Saldanha and she is also of the opinion that swearing in has to be
conducted after the election. “She only kept mum out of respect to the leader,”
said Parrikar further adding that he was only fighting for his right. “I fought
for my right and there was no question of prestige,” while replying to a
question.
The Chief Minister said though he has accepted the moral
authority of ECI, he did point fingers at the EC saying it had no business to
issue him a directive without seeking his side of the story.
“The Election Commission should have questioned me before
acting on the complaint. It’s natural to allow a party against whom a complaint
is lodged to allow it to explain its side before action is initiated,” said the
Chief Minister indicating that commission had faulted initially.