THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The Election Commission’s (EC’s) advisory to avoid places of worship for electioneering seems to have been given the cold shoulder by candidates for whom religious congregations offer a perfect setting for large-scale canvassing.
Every day, social media is abuzz with pictures and videos of candidates with folded hands at various places of worship. However, election officials have warned that the conduct and utterances of the candidates at the places of worship would be crucial when complaints of unfair means of electioneering are brought to their notice.
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO)-Kerala Sanjay Kaul told TNIE that visiting places of worship by candidates could not be considered as a violation of rules per se.
“However, if the candidate invokes religion and seeks vote while visiting the place of worship, it’s a fit case for prosecution,” the official said. The EC had also urged parties and candidates to refrain from seeking votes based on caste, religion and language, and not insult the devotee-deity relation or make any suggestion of a “divine censure”.