Don’t use military photos in your campaign material: EC to parties

NEWDELHI: The Election Commission asked political parties on Saturday not to use photographs of defence personnel in their campaign advertisements, hours after controversy grew over a billboard in Delhi that carried the face of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was recently involved in an Air Force operation to repel Pakistani jets.

The direction, issued in a letter addressed to all national political parties, quoted an advisory sent in 2013 when the panel had said the armed forces were “a neutral and apolitical stakeholder” and parties must not feature

SOCIAL MEDIA USERS HAVE POSTED PICTURES OF A BILLBOARD ADVERTISING THE BJP WITH A SKETCH OF IAF PILOT VARTHAMAN

them on campaign material.

“The Commission is of the view that photographs of Chief of Army Staff or any other Defence personnel and photographs of functions of Defence forces should not be associated with or used in any manner in advertisement/propaganda/campaigning or in any other manner in connection with elections by political parties and candidates,” the EC had said.

Social media users have posted photographs of a billboard advertising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with a sketch of Wing Commander Varthaman.

The advertisement had been put up at South Delhi’s Mehrauli near Qutub Minar, and featured the faces of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president Amit Shah and two local BJP leaders, including former South Delhi Municipal Corporation mayor Sarita Chaudhary.

“Modi hai toh mumkin hai... Namo Again 2019 (Everything is possible if Modi is PM)” read the accompanying text on the hoarding.

BJP representatives turned down requests for a comment and did not confirm if the advertisement had been put up by members of the party.

An Indian Air Force MiG-21 Bison, piloted by Wing Commander Varthaman, shot down a Pakistan Air Force F-16 fighter aircraft on February 27. His plane too was shot down and he was arrested in Pakistan.

The pilot returned home after being released on March 1, a moment that marked a significant de-escalation after a sudden spike in tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.