'Socio-cultural milieu can't be a casualty to elections'

The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday told the national presidents of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Opposition Congress that the country's sociocultural milieu cannot be a casualty to elections.

- ARCHIS MOHAN

The EC's censures have come nearly a month after its initial notices to the party chiefs, and with campaigning for the penultimate phase of the sevenphase elections concluding on Thursday evening.

The EC said that utterances of their star campaigners followed patterns and created narratives that could be damaging beyond the duration of the MCC.

The EC directed BJP President JP Nadda to inform its star campaigners to not make divisive speeches and refrain from any campaigning methods or utterances along religious or communal lines. "The Commission expects BJP, as the ruling party at the Centre, to fully align the campaign methods to the practical aspects of the composite and sensitive fabric of India." It instructed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge to refrain from alleging that the Constitution may be abolished.

The EC had sought comments from national presidents of the two parties on April 25 for the alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by their respective "star campaigners".