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Karnataka elections: Modi makes appeal to voters, Congress moves ECI
The high-decibel campaign for the crucial May 10 assembly elections ended at 5pm on Monday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a fresh appeal to voters on the eve of the Karnataka assembly elections, urging them to “come and vote on May 10” for a “bright future”, prompting the Congress to approach the Election Commission of India (ECI) citing “violation” of the model code of conduct.
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In a memorandum to the poll watchdog, Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala termed the speech “brazen, deliberate and calculated violation of the model code of conduct as well as the provisions of the Representation of the People Act” by Modi and other leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The high-decibel campaign for the crucial May 10 assembly elections ended at 5pm on Monday. Surjewala said even after the campaign period ended, the PM addressed people in two video messages, one around 10 pm on Monday and another at 8.52 am on Tuesday, “wherein he appealed to the voters of Karnataka on behalf of the BJP and all its candidates”.
The Congress alleged the video violated the 48-hour “silence period” before polling, as mandated under the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
“…Should the ECI remain a mute and helpless spectator or act on its constitutional duty under Article 324 of the Constitution of India? Do the laws apply to Prime Minister or not and if ECI has the capacity and willingness to enforce such mandate or remain a helpless bystander?” Surjewala said in a tweet, sharing a copy of memorandum. “Truly a litmus test for ECI!”
The Congress also took exception to interviews of Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda after the official period of campaigning ended.
Taking note of the complaint, EC officials familiar with the matter said that such appeals made outside the polling area do not come under the ambit of the existing law.
The official said that parties alleging violation of Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act through social media have themselves put up a number of such posts even on their official social media handles. “It has been noticed that the section 126 specifically doesn’t cover the use of social media/intermediaries during the silence period. It also does not cover violations outside the poll area. Section 126 RP Act restricts the public display of election matter in the polling area during silence period thereby limiting its application only to the display of election matter in the polling area,” the official added.
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Recognising this gap in the Act, the commission had in 2019 taken up the matter with ministry of law and justice and sent a proposal for expanding the scope of the section 126 to include display of content through “intermediaries” or through any other means. The proposal is still under consideration of the government, the official said.
HT reached out to BJP leaders for a comment on the matter but didn’t get a response immediately.
