Parties demand disqualification of Muslim League legislatorsParties demand disqualification of Muslim League legislators

KOZHIKODE: Major political parties in the state Saturday demanded disqualification of 20 Indian Union Muslim League legislators for reportedly filing false election expenditure returns.

Talking to reporters CPI (M) politburo member and former home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan called for immediate action to declare the election of the 20 MLAs of the IUML as null and void for not mentioning the fund given by the All India Congress Committee to UDF candidates to fight the last Assembly poll in the State.

Demanding legal action against the defaulters, he also sought intervention of the Election Commission on the reported revelation. Echoing his views, BJP in the state demanded the resignation of the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) for misappropriation of election fund.

Talking to reporters here General Secretary K Surendran said the UDF government assumed office with the support of the 20 IUML MLAs has no moral right to continue in office in the wake of the revelation. Demanding their disqualification, he said the party was contemplating legal action on the reported fraud.

The Indian National League, a breakaway faction of the IUML, had also demanded the disqualification of the legislators for fraudulent action. However, describing the reports as baseless the IUML had yesterday said it had given appropriate information to the EC on the fund allocated by the AICC for election expenditure.

Talking to reporters in Malappuram in the wake of revelation triggering a controversy, General Secretary K P A Majeed said the IUML had informed the EC of receiving Rs 2.4 crore from that party. Since the election expenditure was taken care of by the party the contestants need not to mention about the fund received from the Congress in their returns separately, he said. According to reports the Congress had paid all the contestants, including that of the IUML and the Kerala Congress, Rs 10 lakh each during the last assembly poll. But none of these MLAs had mentioned about the receipt in their returns filed to the EC, the report added.