New Delhi, Nov 6 (IANS): The Congress on Monday hit back at the BJP alleging that there appeared to be an alliance between the saffron party and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and rued the refusal by the Election Commission to meet its delegation, even after granting time for the purpose.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, senior party leaders including Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Salman Khurshid, Pramod Tiwari, and Ranjeet Ranjan trained their guns at the BJP, saying that a party delegation was scheduled to meet the poll panel but the appointment was cancelled at the last moment.

Singhvi said the appointment had been postponed to November 8 or 9, when the first phase of elections in Chhattisgarh will already be over on November 7.

The Congress leaders alleged that the BJP’s defeat in Chhattisgarh was certain and that is the reason the BJP was trying to malign the image of the Chief Minister. They said, there appeared to be the biggest alliance between the ED and the Bharatiya Janata Party as the financial probe agency had turned out to be the "election department" of the BJP.

They said they wanted the Commission to take note of it and ban the objectionable statements of the ED, which are clearly aimed at disrupting the free and fair elections.

The Congress leaders said that the ED’s press notes levelling all sorts of allegations went against the basic structure of providing a level playing field to all the parties in the elections. They contended that the BJP and the ED appeared to be working in close coordination, as first it is the BJP that issues a video, which is followed by a press release by the ED.

"It is definitely an attempt to obstruct free and fair elections, it is definitely an attempt to muddy the field because the BJP knows that they are losing badly, it is definitely an attempt to paint a black picture where they know that the janta realise the achievements of the Congress government," Singhvi added.