Modi 'cautioned', Sonia not; BJP asks EC why

NOTHING TO SMILE ABOUT: BJP feels the EC has been harsh on Modi but taken a soft stand on Sonia.

Other stories in the section:

Left meets President, formalises pull out

Left demanded that UPA government be asked to prove its majority.

• Fallout of divorce: LS Speaker's future in question

Featured Blog

Sagarika Ghose

Red Letter Day

Featured Slideshows

Related Headlines

powered by

• Left meets President, formalises pull out
• Fallout of divorce: LS Speaker's future in question

Keywords: gujarat assembly elections, EC

New Delhi: The Election Commission has expressed its displeasure over the conduct of Congress President Sonia Gandhi, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi during the campaign for Gujarat Assembly elections.

However, the EC has been a little more tough on Modi and Singh while passing its order on Saturday advising the duo ''to be more cautious in future'' so that the model code of conduct is adhered to.

In the case of Sonia Gandhi, however, the Commission merely expressed its ''displeasure'' at her 'merchants of death' remark.

The Commission has decided not to take any more action as of now.

But the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken exception to the EC's wordings in its order. The party has asked the Commission asking why Sonia too wasn't asked to be cautious.

In its order on Sonia Gandhi the Commission said: "The Commission, after careful consideration of all aspects, has thus come to the conclusion that in the instant case, the model code of conduct has been violated. The Commission, therefore, conveys its displeasure and expects that in future the salutary provisions of model code of conduct will be adhered to and duly observed in its letter and spirit."

Whereas in the case of Narendra Modi, the EC said: "The Commission, after careful consideration of all aspects, has come to the conclusion that in the instant case, the model code of conduct has been violated. The Commission, therefore, has conveyed its displeasure and advised you to be more cautious in future so that the salutary provisions of model code of conduct are adhered to and duly observed in letter and spirit."

After the meeting the EC made it clear that it was unhappy with Modi's alleged justification of encounter killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh and Sonia's 'merchant of death' remarks against the Gujarat state machinery, including Modi. The panel was also displeased with the replies sent by the three.

The poll panel had earlier served a notice on the Congress high command over her controversial speech, in which she had allegedly said: "Those running the Gujarat government are liars, betrayers and merchants of fear and death."

The EC said it had viewed the video recording of the speech and was prima facie of the view that the statement made in the speech amounted to violation of provisions of model code of conduct.

The Congress had, however, rejected the contention that she had violated the model code of conduct. In her reply to the EC notice, Gandhi is believed to have said that she did name anyone in particular when she made her remarks "merchants of death". But in her reply she also did not specifically exclude Modi from the implications of her statement.

Modi, on the other hand, has been put on notice over his controversial statement on the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter. During an election rally on December 4, Modi had justified the encounter of Sohrabuddin.

In his reply to the EC notice, Modi denied defending the fake encounter killing and said his remarks in a public meeting on the issue were provoked by Gandhi's attack on him.