Congress Files Complaint Against BJP Over "Vote for India or Pakistan" Advertisement
A delegation from the Congress party filed a complaint with the Additional Chief Electoral Officers of Maharashtra against an advertisement published in a newspaper by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The delegation, led by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Atul Londhe, demanded action against the BJP for the advertisement, which they claim is divisive and violates the model code of conduct.
The advertisement, which appeared on the front page of a leading daily, allegedly stated "Where do you want your vote to be celebrated, India or Pakistan?". Londhe claimed that the advertisement was published by the BJP along with its allies, the NCP Ajit Pawar faction and the Shiv Sena Shinde faction.
He further stated that the Congress has lodged a complaint against the BJP with the Additional Chief Electoral Officer, adding that they had earlier complained against several BJP leaders for violating the model code of conduct. The Congress has demanded that the Election Commission cancel the candidature of the BJP candidates as well as those of the Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar factions.
This is not the first time the Congress has accused the BJP of violating the model code of conduct. Last month, the Maharashtra unit of the Congress filed a complaint with the Chief Electoral Officer of the state against the Shiv Sena alleging violation of the model code of conduct and election rules by using government properties for electoral campaigning.
The complaint submitted by Atul Londhe alleged that the Shiv Sena has been unlawfully utilizing MSRTC (ST) buses for the Lok Sabha elections campaigning by putting their banners on these buses.
Maharashtra sends 48 seats to the Lok Sabha. Voting on 13 seats has been completed in the first and second phases, while 11 seats will go to polling in the third phase on May 7. The counting is scheduled on June 4.
In 2019, BJP won 23 seats, while its ally undivided Shiv Sena won 18 seats. NCP and Congress could only win four and one seats respectively.