The Election Commission sought a report from the Faizabad district authorities hours after the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, invoked Lord Ram while addressing a meeting there on Monday with the god’s picture in the backdrop.
“I will fight against corruption all my life, I promise you from the land of Lord Ram,” Mr. Modi said. The BJP leader said even Mahatma Gandhi invoked the name of Ram. “When Gandhiji was asked about his idea of an ideal nation, he said there should be Ram Rajya. If you want to imagine an ideal State, then there must be Ram Rajya.”
Soon after Mr. Modi’s address, the Congress urged the commission to register a first information report against Mr. Modi and de-register the BJP, accusing it of using religion to win votes. “The BJP and Modi have used the portrait of Lord Ram, which is strategically placed behind the podium from where the speech is being delivered by him. The headgear of Lord Ram fits on the head of Modi as can be seen in the video, when he is delivering the speech which deceives the gullible voter,” Congress legal department secretary K.C. Mittal wrote in his complaint to Chief Election Commissioner V.S. Sampath.
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Chief Electoral Officer, Uttar Pradesh, Umesh Sinha said the commission would decide if Mr. Modi had violated the model code of conduct or any other provisions of the law after looking at the report. “We have to wait for the report,” he said. Using religious symbols is banned during election campaigns.
Faizabad, which goes to the polls on Wednesday, is barely six km from Ayodhya and the BJP’s candidate, Lalloo Singh, is an accused in the Babri Masjid demolition case.