The Election Commission on Thursday reprimanded BJP MP from Gorakhpur Yogi Adityanath for “provoking religious enmity” and warned him to be careful while making public utterances during election campaigns.
The EC held that the BJP leader had violated the Model Code of Conduct.
In its order, the EC said Mr. Adityanath, while delivering a speech in Noida, U.P. on September 7, “invoked religion” and “made appeal on the ground of religion to secure votes for his party.”
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The Commission said that the speech had the effect of provoking feelings of enmity or hatred between different classes of the citizens on grounds of religion, race, caste, community or language and also aggravated the existing differences or created mutual hatred or caused tension between different castes and communities.
It rejected the averment in the BJP leader’s reply that his speech, in totality, aimed at the objective of complete religious harmony.
The EC also directed the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of U.P. to intimate it if any FIR has been filed in the matter.
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The EC asked the CEO to direct the district authorities concerned to file a case under Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and Section 153A, Section 295A and Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code against Mr. Adityanath.