A delegation of BJP leaders including Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Monday approached the Election Commission of India demanding police action and a campaign against Congress Punjab president Navjot Singh Sidhu for derogatory comments he has allegedly made against the Brahmin community.
Naqvi and other leaders including Prem Shukla and Om Pathak met the ECI on Monday and complained about some remarks that Sidhu made against the community.
The BJP delegation said that in an election meeting on February 11 in Muddal village, Sidhu referred to a leader “kala Brahmin” (dark-toned Brahmin).
“In doing so, Shri Sidhu insulted the brahmin case and attempted to create a wedge between them and other castes, solely with the objective of creating a divide in the social cohesion amongst the Punjabi community,” the BJP’s complaint read.
In the complaint, the BJP leaders also said that in an earlier instance, Sidhu had reached out to the Muslim community asking them to vote for Congress so that Muslim votes do not get divided.
BJP said that he was in violation of the Model Code of Conduct, section 125A of the Representation of People Act 1951, as well as section 153A of the IPC.
The BJP further demanded that an FIR be filed against Sidhu as well as the Congress party and that Congress’s campaign be censured and they be given a warning. “Impose a ban on Shri Navjot Singh Sidhu and prevent him from campaigning in the present elections,” the BJP’s complaint read.
Punjab goes to the polls in a single phase on February 20; it was scheduled to hold the elections on Monday but was postponed after several parties approached the EC. Results will be out on March 10.
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Published 14 February 2022, 16:08 IST