Lok Sabha Elections 2024: BJP's Abhijit Gangopadhyay to move court against EC order barring him from campaigning

Kolkata: The BJP candidate in Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency in West Bengal, Abhijit Gangopadhyay, said that he would move the court to challenge the order of the Election Commission, barring him from campaigning for 24 hours.

Gangopadhyay, who stepped down as a judge of the Calcutta High Court to join the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, said that the EC had defamed him by issuing the order. He said that he had in his reply to the EC’s notice asked for an opportunity of submitting a supplementary reply and an opportunity for a hearing. But the EC had not done so and ended up as defaming him, he alleged.

The EC barred Ganguly from campaigning in Tamluk for 24 hours beginning from 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

Hours after the Election Commission debarred him from campaigning , Gangopadhyay said he has written to the ECI urging them to reconsider the decision, which if denied, he would move the court to quash the order if the EC does not reconsider its decision.

"I have written to the EC to reconsider its decision. If the order is not reconsidered, I will move the court at a suitable time to quash the order," he had said.

The EC described Gangopadhyay's remark as a 'low-level personal attack', asserting that he violated the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

Gangopadhyay on Monday sent his reply to the show-cause notice issued by the EC for his 'undignified' remark against Banerjee.

"The commission has carefully gone through the contents and averments made in the aforesaid reply of Abhijit Gangopadhyay and has again gone through the statement made and is convinced that he has made a low-level personal attack and thus violated the provisions of the MCC."

"Now, therefore, the commission hereby strongly censures Gangopadhyay for the above-said misconduct and debars him from campaigning for 24 hours starting from 5 pm of May 21," the order said.

The EC acted on a complaint by the Trinamool Congress against Gangopadhyay for his remarks against Banerjee while addressing a public meeting held on May 15 in Haldia.

In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, TMC leader Derek O’Brien said, "In the said speech, Gangopadhyay has made certain highly offensive utterances, being: 'Mamata Banerjee, how much are you being sold for? Your rate is 10 lakhs, why?...Mamata Banerjee, is she even a woman? I keep wondering sometimes."

(With PTI inputs)