By IANS,
New Delhi : T.N. Seshan, who introduced historical electoral reforms and made the Election Commission a powerful agency, could not attend the diamond jubilee celebrations of the poll panel Monday.
“He had confirmed his participation. But he informed us later that he could not come as his brother is ill,” said a poll panel official.
The ceremony, inaugurated by President Pratibha Patil, was attended by country’s top political leaders and former chief election commissioners, including M.S. Gill, who is now a union cabinet minister, and N. Gopalaswami.
National Democratic Alliance convenor Sharad Yadav, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj shared dias with the president, vice president, prime minister, Lok Sabha speaker and Election commissioners.
Other prominent leaders attending the function included Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat, AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa, CPI leader A.B. Bardhan, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and BJP’s Arun Jaitley.