NEW DELHI: Taking exception to the Election Commission's "unwarranted and unjustified" exercise of authority on the office of profit issue, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Saturday urged President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to take suitable action it.

Referring to the Commission's announcement that it had taken cognisance of a complaint by Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy that several CPI(M) MPs held offices of profit and were liable to be disqualified, party general secretary Prakash Karat said the petition did not contain any information to substantiate the allegation.

The former party MP, Nilotpal Basu, whose name was mentioned in the complaint, had sought a copy of the petition.

The complaint, Mr. Karat said, was nothing but a letter with allegations against certain MPs but without details. In spite of this, the Commission, "quite gratuitously," asked Mr. Roy to furnish precise information of the dates of appointment to the offices stated to be held by MPs and all documents to substantiate his allegation.

This, Mr. Karat said, was in effect calling upon Mr. Roy to make out a case against the MPs. The Commission "invariably asserted" that it exercised quasi-judicial powers while discharging its functions under Article 103 of the Constitution. "As such, it was incumbent upon the Commission to reject in limine the purported petition/complaint." It should have given its opinion to the President that the purported complaint did not present even the slightest prima facie case, of which cognisance could be taken.

Mr. Karat said it was well established that no judicial or quasi-judicial authority could seek to obtain material from a party with a view to making out a cause of action, where none was disclosed. Many eminent lawyers shared this view. It was incumbent on the quasi-judicial authority to reject the petition if it did not disclose any case.

But the Commission surprisingly sought to give an opportunity to the complainant to try make out a case by invitingit to furnish material/documents in a move calculated to cure the incurable defects [of the complaint], which is "no part of the duty of a judicial/quasi-judicial authority."

Urging Mr. Kalam to reject the complaint, Mr. Karat said only such action could help to restore confidence.

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