The Election Commission has instructed all political parties and candidates contesting the April 9 Kerala Assembly polls to obtain prior clearance from the MCMC committee before publishing any print advertisements on polling day or the preceding day.
In a directive issued late Friday, Kerala Chief Electoral Officer Rathan U Kelkar said that objectionable, misleading or inflammatory advertisements in print media during the final phase of campaigning could undermine the integrity of the electoral process.
"At such a critical juncture, affected parties and candidates often lack the opportunity to provide necessary rebuttals," it said.
Therefore, exercising the powers under Article 324 of the Constitution, the EC directed that no political party, candidate, organisation, or person shall publish any advertisement in print media on April 8 and 9 unless the contents are got pre-certified from the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC) at the state or district level as the case may be, the order issued by the CEO said.
Article 324 vests the power of superintendence, direction, and control of elections in the EC.
It further said that the applicants must submit their proposed advertisements to the state or district MCMC not later than two days prior to the date of publication of the advertisement.
(With inputs from PTI)