New Delhi: With two phases of polling in the marathon Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday issued a stringent directive to the BJP and Congress amid concerns over deteriorating quality of campaigning by the country’s two leading national parties.
BJP has been warned against using religious and communal overtones in campaign speeches. Congress, on the other hand, has been told to ensure its campaigners don’t make statements that might create false impressions, like claims about the Constitution being abolished.
“India’s socio-cultural milieu is an enduring preserve and cannot be made a casualty to elections,” ECI stated, stressing that the BJP and Congress must not compromise the integrity of India’s electoral traditions.
The poll panel instructed BJP president JP Nadda and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to issue formal directives to star campaigners to maintain decorum and exercise caution in their public discourse.
ECI noted that the “party currently in power” has an extra responsibility during election times, adding that this does not grant unlimited leeway to the Opposition either.
On April 25, ECI had issued notices to Nadda and Kharge over alleged Model Code of Conduct (MCC) violations by star campaigners.
The poll panel has been forced to repeat its directive almost a month later.
