New Delhi: In an indication of how seriously the Election Commission of India has taken the tone and tenor of electioneering, particularly the inflammatory remarks and hate speeches by BJP leader Amit Shah and SP leader Azam Khan, the body on Friday banned both men from holding public meetings, processions or roadshows in Uttar Pradesh.
Expressing its displeasure over the Akhilesh Yadav government’s “soft pedalling” against Azam Khan, it asked the UP CM to check his “undesirable activities”, lodge FIRs against Shah and Azam, and initiate criminal proceedings.
Chief Election Commissioner V.S. Sampath and Election Commissioners H.S. Brahma and S.N.A. Zaidi said: “These statements are, inter alia, promoting feelings of enmity, hatred and ill-will and creating disharmony between different religious communities on the ground of religion and also likely to disturb peace and public tranquillity.”
Cracking the whip on Narendra Modi’s close aide Amit Shah and SP leader Azam Khan, the Election Commission on Friday banned them from holding public meetings, processions or roadshows in Uttar Pradesh and asked authorities to initiate criminal proceedings against them.
In a directive to the UP chief secretary, the EC said, “No permission should be granted for holding public meetings, public processions, public rallies, road shows, etc., by the district administration authorities, where the above two leaders are expected or likely to participate.”
The commission also directed the UP chief secretary to ensure compliance of its orders by 5 pm on Saturday. The poll body directed the authorities to take all preventive measures against Mr Shah and Mr Khan under the relevant provisions of the CrPC. The Election Commission had on Monday issued notice to Mr Shah for his “revenge” remark made while campaigning in the riot-affected areas of UP. The poll panel sought an explanation from him for violating the model code through his speeches made while campaigning in Shamli, Bijnore and Muzaffarnagar districts of the state. Two FIRs were lodged against Mr Shah on Thursday by the authorities in UP.
Mr Khan, meanwhile, came under the commission’s scrutiny after his alleged remarks on Kargil martyrs. He had said on Tuesday that it was “Muslim soldiers” who had ensured India’s victory in the 1999 Kargil war against Pakistan.
The order expressed concern over the “highly inflammatory speeches” being made by both leaders during the ongoing election campaign. “These statements are, inter alia, promoting feelings of enmity, hatred and ill-will and creating disharmony between different religious communities on the ground of religion. Further, these provocative statements being made by them are highly prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony between different religious communities and also likely to disturb peace and public tranquillity,” it said.
Criticising the SP in UP, the poll panel said it has observed that the state have not acted with the required alacrity. “Particularly, no FIR seems to have been filed against Azam Khan so far and the commission is of the view that the state machinery is soft pedalling in taking required action against him so that his undesirable activities could have been properly and effectively checked,” it said.
