The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): The Congress Party took a firm stand on Tuesday, bringing a grievance before the Election Commission against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) current advertising campaign. The opposition alleges that the campaign smears the Congress through manipulated videos and falsely associates their campaign with billionaire financier George Soros. The party has called for immediate intervention by the Election Commission to sanction those responsible and retract the contentious campaign material.
Jairam Ramesh, the All India Congress Committee General Secretary in charge of Communications, highlighted the party’s concerns regarding the BJP’s deliberate use of edited and misleading videos aimed at tarnishing the Indian National Congress’s image. The party requested swift action from the Election Commission against the creators of this disparaging campaign and demanded its withdrawal.
A delegation of Congress leaders, including Salman Khurshid, Pawan Khera, and Gurdeep Sappal, formally presented their complaints to the Election Commission, submitting a detailed memorandum of their grievances.
Furthermore, the Congress has raised objections against what they describe as the BJP’s unwarranted attempts to connect the Congress campaign to George Soros. This complaint extends to other instances of what the party considers false propaganda targeting them. Ramesh emphasized the malicious and defamatory nature of these materials, seeking immediate corrective action from the Election Commission.
The complaint also addresses an alleged breach of the model code of conduct in Andhra Pradesh, where assembly and Lok Sabha elections are concurrently held. The Congress has pointed out that state scheme advertisements prominently featuring the Chief Minister’s photograph persisted, contravening electoral fairness principles. The party has advocated for the preservation of welfare benefits for beneficiaries throughout the electoral process, a stance that the Election Commission acknowledged and acted upon by ordering the removal of such advertisements.
Additionally, the Congress sought clarification from the Election Commission on the guidelines for allocating and dividing expenses for campaign materials between the candidate and the party, aiming for transparency and adherence to electoral conduct norms.