PHASE 2 CAMPAIGNING
sition party was planning to give people’s hard-earned money and valuables to “infiltrators” and “those who have more children” and referred to former prime minister Manmohan Singh’s speech in 2006 to contend he had said that Muslims have the “first claim” on the country’s resources.
The Congress was quick to react, saying that after facing “disappointment” in the first phase of Lok Sabha polls, the prime minister was resorting to “lies” and “hate speech” to divert people from the real issues.
The party also urged the Election Commission to take action against Modi for his remarks, alleging they were ‘divisive’, ‘malicious’ and targeted a particular religious community.
The next day, Modi again accused the Congress of planning to redistribute people’s property if it is voted to power, but stopped short of saying that the wealth would go to Muslims.
Addressing a rally in Aligarh, a western Uttar Pradesh constituency with a sizeable Muslim population, Modi further said he wanted to “alert” people about the “intentions” of the Congress and the opposition INDIA bloc.
As campaigning was drawing to a close, remarks by Congress leader Sam Pitroda on inheritance tax gave enough fodder to
Modi and other BJP leaders to launch an all-out attack on the issue of “wealth redistribution”.
In his poll rallies on Wednesday, Modi framed Pitroda’s comments in his wider onslaught against the Congress, asserting that they have exposed its hidden agenda and that the party has become so removed from the country’s social and family values that it wants to legally rob people of their assets and lifelong savings they want to bequeath to their children.
The Congress swung into damage control, distancing itself from the comments of the US-based president of its overseas wing.
Over the past few weeks, various political parties held rallies and road shows across the states and also did door-to-door campaigning.
In Kerala, where the BJP has pulled out all stops in its bid to make inroads, diverse issues ranging from CAA, ‘love jihad’, controversies surrounding ‘The Kerala Story’ movie, Rahul Gandhi’s candidature in Wayanad, and BJP’s declaration that it would change the name of Sultan Bathery to Ganapathy Vattom dominated the high-decibel public campaigns.
Vijayan, in response, recalled “an old name of Rahul Gandhi” to attack the Congress leader. He was apparently referring to former chief minister V S Achuthanandan’s calling Gandhi an “Amul baby” a decade ago.
After Friday’s phase, polling will be over in Kerala, Rajasthan and Tripura. In the first phase on April 19, polling was completed in all seats of Tamil Nadu (39), Uttarakhand (5), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Meghalaya (2), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Puducherry (1), Sikkim (1) and Lakshadweep (1).
In 2019, the NDA had won 56 of these 89 seats and the UPA 24. Six of these seats have been redrawn as part of the delimitation exercise.
Authorities in these constituencies have been directed to ensure that no outsider remains in these areas 48 hours before polling. Any form of electioneering, public meetings, press conferences by political parties, interviews and panel discussions in electronic or print media have been strictly prohibited.
The third phase of polling for 94 seats in 12 states and Union territories will be held on May 7.
show causes to individual star campaigners, including Congress’s Priyanka Gandhi. It has never sent such a notice to Modi individually despite the multiple complaints against him over the years.
In its complaint, the Congress highlighted a part of Modi’s speech in which he said when the party was in power it said Muslims have the first right to the country’s resources. Modi questioned who will they redistribute resources to. “Those who have more children. Those who are infiltrators. Will your hard-earned money be given to infiltrators? Will you accept that? The Congress manifesto says they will take stock of the gold owned by our mothers and sisters, and then they will redistribute that wealth. And distribute it to those who, according to the Manmohan Singh government, have the first right to resources — Muslims. This is Urban Naxal thinking, and mothers and sisters, they will not even spare your Mangalsutra. They will stoop to this level.”
In December 2006, then-Prime Minister Singh said, “We will have to devise innovative plans to ensure that minorities, particularly the Muslim minority, are empowered to share equitably in the fruits of development. They must have the first claim on our resources.”
The Congress maintained Modi’s comments violated sections of the IPC and the MCC, a voluntary set of guidelines for political parties during the election season. MCC says no party or candidate shall include in “any activity which may aggravate existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different castes and communities, religious or linguistic.”
Modi’s comments prompted a flurry of complaints to the poll watchdog over the MCC violation. On Monday, a Congress delegation submitted to ECI that Modi’s speech was “illegal”.
It accused the BJP of repeatedly using religious iconography in its Lok Sabha campaign. The Congress focussed on Modi’s speech and use of religious iconography. “...the Prime Minister’s statements to the voters is not only violative of the Representation of People Act, 1951, the Model Code of Conduct, Indian Penal Code, Hon’ble Commission’s instructions but also forms a part of [a] larger and grossly problematic strategy of maliciously create enmity on grounds of religion and also tarnish the principal opposition party based on rank falsehoods with a view to adversely impact the minds of the voters.”