The BJP has complained to the Election Commission against the hate speech by Congress candidate Imran Masood.
The BJP asked the election panel to take action against the ruling party for trying to vitiate the atmosphere.
“If left unchecked, this will set the tone for the remaining portion of the current election campaign, converting it into a hate campaign, inciting communal passions and vitiating the entire atmosphere of a free and fair campaign conducted with adherence to accepted norms of decency,” the BJP said in its memorandum to the Election Commission.
Referring to the Masood incident, the BJP said, “the Congress candidate in Saharanpur directly appeals to Muslim Voters and incites them to violence in an aggressive tenor and tone that is typical of Taliban activists.”
The Bharatiya Janata Party delegation, including party vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, general secretary J P Nadda and spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman requested the Election Commission to take punitive action such as withdrawal of the symbol and de-recognition of the Congress party.
“This is not the first time the Congress is indulging in such practices violating the model code of conduct.
There are more than two dozen violations committed by the Congress,” Naqvi said after meeting the Election Commission here.
The BJP also raised the issue of security concern for its senior leaders.
“Intelligence and other agencies have repeatedly said that some forces are trying to disrupt the atmosphere during the election. We expressed our concern about the security for our senior leaders.
“We asked the Election Commission to issue advisories to all states to take adequate security for our senior leaders,” Naqvi added.