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By Oishani Bhattacharya
The official X handle of Karnataka chief electoral officer on April 26 announced that action had been initiated against sitting Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya for posting a video on his X handle and soliciting votes on the grounds of religion. A case was lodged at Jayanagar police station in Bengaluru on April 25 against Surya under Section 123(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Police sources told The Hindu that they had taken cognizance of a tweet by Surya where he allegedly sought votes citing the Ram Mandir and asked people to vote for Modi for “a better and secure future.”
The said tweet was shared by the BJP Yuva Morcha national president on April 25.
https://twitter.com/Tejasvi_Surya/status/1783311213276832075?t=C1NHF79qhhvC3VEPKQw_Mw&s=19
Section 123(3) of The Representation of the People Act, 1951, under which elections are held in India, prohibits a candidate from seeking votes “on the ground of his religion, race, caste, community or language or the use of, or appeal to religious symbols…” and designates these as ‘corrupt practices’.
The tweet by the BJP’s Bengaluru South also violated provisions of the election model code of conduct (MCC), which had come into effect on March 19 with the announcement of the 2024 general elections. Serial No. 3 of ‘General Conduct’ under the MCC states, “There shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings for securing votes. Mosques, Churches, Temples or other places of worship shall not be used as forum for election propaganda.” Serial No. 4 requires parties and candidates to “avoid scrupulously all activities which are “corrupt practices” and offences under the election law.”
When Alt News went through the official X handles of BJP and its various state units, we found that the Ram Mandir issue, photos of the newly-built temple in Ayodhya and the idol of Ram and religious tropes were used rampantly in visuals while seeking votes, in blatant defiance of the above provisions of the MCC and the Act.
Read Full Story https://www.altnews.in/ram-mandir-all-over-bjps-election-campaign-in-brazen-disregard-to-poll-code-representation-of-people-act/