BJP to move CEC

The BJP today said it would file a petition with the Central Election Commissioner (CEC) on removing Election Commissioner Naveen Chawla.

"We have withdrawn the case only today and will approach the CEC with our petition as soon as possible," said BJP Spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad.

Party insiders said this was the "best possible outcome" for the party's campaign for removing Chawla. The party had accused Chawla of accepting donations from Congress MPs and other members for trusts run by him and his family.

"Even if a decision on Chawla is in abeyance, we will have achieved our goal of establishing that there are problems with him," said a source. The party is also likely to add several other instances of what it sees as Chawla's bias towards the Congress.

"Through petitions under the Right to Information Act (RTI), we have come to know that Chawla has dissented in a couple of EC decisions in a way that might benefit the UPA and its allies," said a source.