New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday submitted a memorandum for action against Prime Minister Modi for holding a road show in the Sabarmati assembly segment of Gandhinagar on the polling day. Just before casting his vote, the Prime Minister rode in an open jeep, walked down the road and even gave a short address. Following protests from the opposition leaders, the commission said in the evening that it has sought a report on the matter from the Chief Election Officer of Gujarat.
Urging the people to exercise their franchise in huge numbers, PM Modi had remarked that the voter I-card of a person is more potent a weapon than improvised explosive device. “The weapon of terrorism is IED, the strength of democracy is a voter ID. I can say with certainty that the voter ID is much, much more powerful than an IED, so we should understand the strength of our voter IDs,” PM Modi said.
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The Opposition has pointed out that the roadshow was telecast by nearly all TV news channels. While the procession itself was an infringement of the model code of conduct, Modi had addressed the gathering. The Congress memorandum said PM Modi has become a habitual offender, essentially because no action is taken by the commission for his almost daily violations.
“This is our seventh representation requesting the commission to take action against the Prime Minister who has undermined every institution through his words and action,” the 5-page memorandum said. It urged the commission to pass a written order to enable the party to pursue appropriate remedies. It said the commission cannot have two sets of laws, one for Modi and BJP President Amit Shah and another for the rest.
Earlier in the morning, the Prime Minister met his mother Heeraben Modi in Gandhinagar and sought her blessings. In another memorandum, the Congress has demanded action against BJP President Amit Shah for his references to the Armed Forces in West Bengal poll campaign.