MCC violation: BJP’s Tejaswi Surya, K Sudhakar booked by election commission
Officials said a case against Surya was filed at the Jayanagar police station in Bengaluru following his social media post allegedly soliciting votes on religious grounds
Bengaluru: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has filed cases against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates Tejasvi Surya from Bengaluru and K Sudhakar from the Chikkaballapura constituency over alleged violation of Mode Code of Conduct during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
Surya, contesting from Bengaluru South PC, has been booked under Section 123(3) of corrupt practices, while Sudhakar has been booked for trying to bribe voters and undue influence, said officials aware of the matter.
Officials said a case against Surya was filed at the Jayanagar police station in Bengaluru following his social media post allegedly soliciting votes on religious grounds.
Karnataka chief electoral officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Meena highlighted the violation, stating, “Case is booked against Tejasvi Surya MP and Candidate of Bengaluru South PC on 25.04.24 at Jayanagar PS u/s 123(3) for posting a video in X handle and soliciting votes on the ground of religion.”
Section 123(3) of the Representation of the People Act (RPA) prohibits appeals to voters based on religion, among other factors. Surya’s post featuring Ram Lalla’s Surya Tilak in Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir stirred controversy for its perceived religious appeal.
This came after Surya shared a video of Ram Lalla’s Surya Tilak in Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir and posted, “Our generation was blessed to witness the majestic Surya Tilak on Bhagwan Shri Ram at Ayodhya on Ram Navami. A wait for almost 500 years & a wish of crores of Bharatiyas was fulfilled by PM Shri @narendramodi Ji. For Bharatiyata to survive, vote for BJP! #DakshinakkeSurya”.
The MP from south Bengaluru did not respond to the calls for a response.
Sudhakar on the other hand faced allegations of bribery and undue influence, with cash amounting to Rs.4.8 crore seized by the Flying Squads Team (FST) in Chikkaballapur.
The election commission confirmed the seizure and registration of a first information report against Sudhakar under relevant legal provisions.
CEO Meena said, “The FST of Chikkaballapura seized cash to the tune of Rs.4.8 crore. An FIR also has been registered by the state surveillance team of Chikkaballapur LS constituency against K Sudhakar, BJP candidate, on April 25 at Madanayakanahally police station.”
Meanwhile, Vasanth Kumar, advocate and BJP’s legal cell convenor said five complaints were lodged by them against opposition candidates with the election commission on Friday for violating the MCC.
“Today, five complaints were lodged with the election commission. One is canvassing and speaking to workers by CM Siddaramaiah inside a polling booth in Mysuru...another complaint is in a polling booth in Kolar constituency, one ex-councillor Venkatesh is distributing cash to voters, another complaint is AICC [All India Congress Committee] youth president Srinivas is protesting...today is polling day so he is violating Model Code of Conduct,” Kumar said.
