Violation of Covid norms in UP polls: EC advises Samajwadi Party to be careful in future

The Election Commission of India on Tuesday concluded that the Samajwadi Party had violated the Covid-19 safety guidelines issued by the panel in Uttar Pradesh and four other poll-bound states in view of the surge in coronavirus infections.

The ECI, however, did not act against the Samajwadi Party, which had a congregation of its workers and supporters at its headquarters in Lucknow on January 14, allegedly flouting the Covid-19 guidelines -- its first violation by the party in the current round of elections.

The poll panel advised the party “to be careful in future and to follow all the extant guidelines diligently”. It also instructed the party to instruct all its members to adhere to the extant Covid-19 safety guidelines during the period of the elections without fail.

The legal proceedings initiated against the SP on the basis of the FIR registered at the Gautampalli Police Station in Lucknow against the 2,000-2,500 political functionaries of the party would continue.

Also read: Mamata Banerjee to campaign for Samajwadi Party in UP; to attend virtual sabha with Akhilesh in Lucknow, Varanasi

The ECI had issued a notice to the SP on January 15 for allegedly flouting the ban it had imposed on physical rallies in Uttar Pradesh and the four other poll-bound states in view of the third wave of the Covid-19.

The commission acted after the Chief Electoral Officer of Uttar Pradesh reported that the Samajwadi Party had violated the Covid-19 protocols by holding a public meeting at its headquarters at Vikramaditya Marg in Lucknow on January 14. The party chief Akhilesh Yadav not only attended the conclave but also delivered a speech.

The SP in its response to the ECI claimed that it had not violated the ban imposed on the rallies. It argued that the congregation in the party office on January 14 was not a rally or public meeting. It stated that more than 4,000 applicants had asked for the party’s nomination to contest the elections and they were being interviewed in its headquarters in Lucknow. It also said that the applicants were being allowed to enter the party headquarters only if they followed the Covid-19 protocols and guidelines.

“The said procedure is a part of the election process and has not been prohibited by the Election Commission of India under its guidelines dated January 8, 2022,” the SP wrote to ECI.

The poll panel, however, was not convinced by the argument of the SP. It referred to the press note it had issued while announcing the schedule of the polls on January 8.

It reminded that all stakeholders, including the candidates and the political parties, campaigners, voters and authorities engaged in the election process, should always be conscious of their prime duty towards public health and safety and should abide by the general instructions and other norms of the Covid-19 appropriate behaviour as mandated by the respective authorities prescribed under the law.

Also read: SP MLA Pinki Yadav, others booked for violating MCC, Covid guidelines

An FIR was also registered at the Gautampalli Police Station in Lucknow against the “political functionaries” of the Samajwadi Party under Sections 188, 269, 270 and 341 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Section 54 of the Disaster Management Act 2005 and Section 03 of the Pandemic Act 1897. The Station House Officer of the Gautamapalli Police Station was suspended for “dereliction of duty” as he failed to stop the public meeting.

The Model Code of Conduct had come into force in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur soon after the commission had announced the schedule of the assembly elections in the five states on January 8 last. The poll panel had also banned physical rallies and road shows for a week in view of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Samajwadi Party held the congregation of its party leaders, workers and supporters, at its office even when the ban on rallies was in force.

The EC on Saturday extended the ban till January 22.

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