EC seeks report from Gujarat poll authorities on Narendra Modi roadshow

New Delhi The Election Commission has sought a report from the chief electoral officer of Gujarat on a roadshow of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Ahmedabad Tuesday which the Congress alleged violated electoral lawBriefing reporters on phase three of Lok Sabha elections which concluded Tuesday senior Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha said a report has been sought in this regard from the chief electoral officer of GujaratSources later pointed out that poll authorities in Gujarat have indicated that prima facie the PM has not violated the model code But there was no official word on this from the ECSection 126 of the Representation of the People Act states that No person shall iquest convene hold attend join or address any public meeting or procession in connection with an election in any polling area during the period of fortyeight hours ending with the hour fixed for the conclusion of the poll for any election in that polling areaDeputy Election Commissioner Chandra Bhushan Kumar responding to a question on BJP chief Amit Shahs reported remarks on Modi ji ki vayu sena made in West Bengal on Monday said details have to be collected which will come in a day or two The Congress on Tuesday moved the EC alleging that Modi took out a roadshow after casting his vote and made political remarks in violation of the model code of conduct and demanded that a campaign ban of 23 days be imposed on him for being an uncaring offenderAfter casting his vote in Ahmedabad Modi walked some distance from the polling booth and interacted briefly with mediapersonsRespnding to a volley of questions on delay on part of the Commission in finalising its response on the prime ministers remarks in Latur Maharashtra on April 9 urging young voters to cast ballot in the name of heroes of Balakot air strike Chandra Bhushan Kumar said before taking a decision EC looks into the issue in its entiretyInitially he said the district authorities had sent only the relevant paragraph of the PMs speech The officials there are good in English and Marathi But Hindi is an issue When we demanded a certified transcript was sent to us on April 16 The matter is now under examination he saidAsked why in some cases the EC has taken decisions immediately and why was it delaying other matters another deputy EC Sandeep Saxena said the EC takes decision after looking into various aspects such as model code legal angleKumar said every speech is different and is to be considered in different contextIt is not that the work has stopped he said adding that poll officials are also busy with preparing for polls and holding them smoothlyAs and when a decision s taken it will be known to you he saidResponding to a question on complaint against Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his chowkidar chor hai jibe against Modi he said transcripts of his two media interactionsinterviews have been obtained and it is under the consideration of the CommissionCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get the latest updates