ECI advised PMO to ensure MCC isn’t violated during Modi’s meditation: Official

The Election Commission of India (ECI) “advised” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to ensure the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is not violated during Narendra Modi’s two-day meditation from Thursday to Saturday, an official of the poll body said. The advice came after the PMO “informed” the ECI of Modi’s plan on Wednesday.

The Congress filed a complaint with the ECI saying the meditation break in Kanniyakumari will coincide with the seventh phase of the Lok Sabha polls on Saturday and violate the 48-hour silence period ahead of the polling and MCC.

The official cited above said strictly speaking no permission was required for Modi’s trip as he is not making any speeches. The process followed was identical to the one at the end of the 2019 general elections when Modi went on a similar trip to Badrinath and Kedarnath during the silence period ahead of the final phase of the elections, the official added.

The ECI official said that the poll body could not tell the media to not report. “Tomorrow, if the prime minister is in his designated house and does a meditation, and the media covers it, is it a violation? Or if the Opposition does it, is it a violation? There is no end to this,” the official said.

The official added the level-playing field that must be ensured is that there is no undue access to state resources. “That is not the case here,” the official said.

The official said every candidate is entitled to communicate through symbols and symbolism. “They are not asking for votes. The Opposition can also invoke symbolism this way. We have to all work within the confines of the law,” the official said when asked if visiting a religious place to perform rituals wearing robes of a colour associated with a religion would violate the MCC and potentially the law around silence period.

In 2017, the ECI withdrew a show cause notice to Congress’s Rahul Gandhi for giving a TV interview during the silence period ahead of the Gujarat assembly elections. It instead set up a panel to suggest amendments to Section 126 the Representation of People Act dealing with the silence period following complaints that the law does not take into account changes in the media landscape and the online space.

A former EC official called Modi’s trip to Kanniyakumari a blatant violation of MCC. “This is completely analogous to what happened five years ago. It is the same debate. In 2019, when he went to Badrinath and Kedarnath, there was 24-hour coverage of his visit. Such coverage affects the minds of tens of thousands of voters and it disturbs the level playing field. This is subtle campaigning. Not one picture should be allowed. If a camera covers it, it is influencing the minds of the voters,” the former official said on condition of anonymity.

The former ECI official said the poll body used to stop even the delivery of the newspapers from outside the campaign area during the silence period and publication in the campaign area was banned. “...now, because of 24X7 TV and electronic media coverage, such restrictions are not possible. If he is sitting in Kanyakumari, he is visible in Delhi. In the age of media today, we cannot stop the TV signal.”

The ex-official said prima facie Modi’s 2019 visit during the silence period influenced voters’ minds. “He invoked religion through religious symbolism. Even if one voter is influenced, it is enough to pollute the election process,” the former official said

Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who led a Congress delegation that met ECI officials and complained about Modi’s trip on Wednesday, pointed out the silence period before the polling began on Thursday and will continue until Saturday. He added Modi’s meditation is a direct violation of the MCC. “...you are either campaigning this way or publicising yourself through new channels and print media,” Singhvi said.

Singhvi said that the Congress proposed that Modi can start his meditation on Saturday evening. He added if Modi insisted on starting it on Thursday evening, the ECI should prohibit all media from reporting about it. “He is a candidate himself in the last phase. About 55 constituencies are going to polls in the last phase. Such publicity should not be allowed,” Singhvi said.