Kolkata: The Election Commission on Friday issued a show-cause notice to former high court judge and BJP Lok Sabha candidate Abhijit Gangopadhyay for his "improper, injudicious and undignified" remarks against Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Friday said that it has lodged a complaint with the Election Commission against the BJP candidate for his alleged 'sexist' remarks at a public rally. The EC in its notice noted that Gangopadhyay's comment has been found to be "improper, injudicious, beyond dignity in every sense of term, in bad taste" and prima facie violative of the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct and its advisory to political parties. The EC has sought a response by 5 PM of May 20.
The notice reminded the former Calcutta High Court judge about its recent advisory which said that political parties and candidates should refrain from any deeds or action or utterances that may be construed as being repugnant to the honour and dignity of women.
TMC leader and West Bengal minister Shashi Panja told reporters here that Gangopadhyay, who is a former judge of Calcutta High Court, has crossed all limits of decency by making 'sexist' remarks against Banerjee.
In a purported video which surfaced on Thursday Gangopadhyay was heard wondering about "the amount at which Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is getting sold," triggering a row with the TMC labelling it as BJP's guarantee of disrespecting women, while the saffron party raised doubts about the clip's authenticity. PTI, however, couldn't verify the authenticity of the video.
Gangopadhyay is a candidate and a former judge. He must be aware of legal matters than most of us. Can a candidate use such words, Panja wondered. "We have filed a complaint with the EC and also take legal recourse", she said.
Panja said, "The remarks made by Gangopadhyay smacks of his anti-women traits. This shows that the politics of the BJP has reached a nadir". "The remarks made by the BJP candidate of Tamluk are sexist in nature and his candidature must be cancelled", she demanded. (With PTI Inputs)
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