MUMBAI: Social activists have written to State Election Commission (SEC) of Maharashtra urging it to "issue a show-cause notice to BJP", after its leader Raosaheb Danve started a controversy with his remark asking voters to accept "Laxmi", the goddess of wealth, during the polls.
"On the eve of elections, Laxmi comes to your house and you should accept it," Danve had said during a civic poll campaign meeting at Paithan in Aurangabad district on Saturday.
According to social activists Vishwambhar Choudhari and Anjali Damania, Danve's remarks imply that political parties offer cash to people to vote for them and voters should accept it without any hesitation.
"This direct statement is not only anti-democratic and corrupt but is also a blatant violation of the Election Commission's model code of conduct," they said.
"If such a coarse public speech is allowed to be resorted to by the BJP state president or his candidates contesting the election, it will certainly undermine the purity of the election process mandated by the poll code," the activists said.
"An inquiry needs to be initiated in this matter urgently and stringent action needs to be taken against Danve and the BJP as a political party for violation of the model code of conduct," they added.
The activists claimed that this is not the first instance where Danve has made an "irresponsible" statement publicly.
"On November 25 while speaking at a Municipal Council election campaign in Amalner, he had threatened the voters that power at central and state governments currently lies with the BJP and if the voters do not vote for them, the local development works will not get funds from the state and central government", they further claimed.
"This is an act of directly blackmailing the voters. While the election commission, through constitutional directions to it, aims at an unbiased election process, politicians like Danve are challenging all core values and principles of unbiasedness," they alleged.
According to them, all these statements are required to be examined in the context of Prevention of Corruption Act.
"You are requested to kindly issue a show cause notice to the BJP and its Maharashtra state (unit) president Danve and take appropriate action in the matter," the activists said in a letter to SEC.