Click to play videoNew Delhi: Election Commissioner Navin Chawla, in the eye of storm following recommendations made by Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswamy to President Pratibha Devisingh Patil that he be sacked, is in for more trouble.
A Jaipur trial court has directed the police to investigate charges against Chawla of misusing authority to get land allotted for himself near Jaipur.
Chawla allegedly got six acres of land in 2000 near Jaipur's Sanganer Airport by floating two private trusts to obtain land lower then the reserved price.
"Court ordered with this instruction that the senior police officer should investigate this matter and file his report on March 16," Kailash Nath Bhatt, advocate, said.
But that isn't deterring the government from clearing the way for Chawla's anointment as chief election commissioner.
Sources have told CNN-IBN that the Law Ministry is ready with its opinion on Gopalaswamy's recommendations to remove Chawla.
But the report is likely to be timed with the Lok Sabha Elections and for the moment the Union Government is not revealing its cards.
Relying on the TN Seshan judgement, the Law Ministry has said the Chief Election Commissioner cannot suo moto remove an Election Commissioner from office.
Moreover, it's said the Chief Election Commissioner cannot give his opinion, as has been the case, till asked for by the appropriate authority, in this case the President of India.
"Any adverse reaction of the law ministry or any other ministry is just to be expected of them. But we will not give up this fight," said Arun Jaitly, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson.
Sources say the Law Ministry will send its recommendations back to the Prime Ministers Office once the elections dates are announced.
In the meanwhile, it will have to devise a strategy to ride the storm the issue will raise in the coming Budget Session.
The government's thumbs down to the Chief Election Commissioner may pave the way for Chawla but the next five years are certainly not going to be easy for him as the BJP which has consistently been campaigning for his removal will ensure that the crown he wears is full of thorns.
(With inputs from Smita Nair)
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