– Abdul Bari Masoud
20 May 2024: Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take immediate action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders for their repeated use of hate speech targeting the Muslim community. Yechury expressed concern over the ECI’s inaction despite multiple complaints about such violations.
In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Sunday, Yechury accused BJP leaders of serious breaches of the Model Code of Conduct. He highlighted that the CPI(M) had already brought these issues to the ECI’s attention through several complaints. According to Yechury, BJP leaders have been making blatantly communal appeals, engaging in fear mongering, and spreading outright lies against the Muslim community. Despite these documented violations, the ECI has not taken any action against the offenders.
“We have, through a series of complaints, brought to the attention of the Election Commission of India the serious violations of the Model Code of Conduct by several BJP leaders. Their resort to blatant lies and fabrication, fear mongering, and overtly communal appeals were highlighted in these complaints. Sadly, in none of these complaints has the ECI punished the culprits. We urged the Commission to act against offenders immediately to nip the disease in the bud. Unfortunately, the ECI has not acted,” Yechury stated.
In his complaint against the Prime Minister, Yechury pointed out that, in a departure from precedent, the Commission sent a notice to the President of the BJP rather than directly to the Prime Minister, and only after a significant delay and public pressure. This notice has had no impact, as evidenced by continued violations by the Prime Minister and other BJP leaders. Due to the EC’s inaction, more BJP leaders are inciting hatred against the Muslim community, Yechury added.
In recent instances, Prime Minister Modi, speaking at a rally in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki on May 16, 2024, stated that “if SP and Congress come to power, Ram Lalla will be in a tent again, and they will run a bulldozer on the Ram temple.”
Similarly, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, at a rally in Saran on May 17, 2024, claimed that “it is part of the Congress’ politics of appeasement. They also want to provide reservations based on religion to benefit Muslims only. The Congress and RJD are trying to rob SCs, STs, and OBCs of quotas and divert those to Muslims.”
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, speaking at an election meeting in Raghunathpur, Siwan, on May 18, declared that if the NDA returns to power, it would implement the Uniform Civil Code and end “this business of marrying four times.”
He also mentioned closing madrassas, referring to them as “shops that produce mullas.”
Sarma stated, “We closed 700 madrassas in Assam, and no one dared to raise their voice against it. This is new India, the Hindus’ India, and I won’t let these Mulla-making shops open again. We need 400 seats to bring the Uniform Civil Code, construct the Krishna Janambhoomi temple, construct the Gyanvapi temple, and stop reservations for Muslims.”
Reiterating the demand for action on previously lodged complaints, Yechury urged the Commission to act immediately against Narendra Modi, Yogi Adityanath, and Himanta Biswa Sarma. He warned that failure to take decisive action against high-ranking offenders would compromise the ECI’s impartiality and credibility.
“We had, through our earlier complaints, warned the Commission that if it fails to take decisive action in cases where the offenders are those in high positions of power, the impartiality of the ECI will be in question and its credibility compromised,” Yechury added.
