PM 'address to nation' didn't violate model code: EC

The Election Commission on Friday concluded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not violated the Model Code of Conduct by announcing on TV and radio the success of the “Mission Shakti” anti-satellite missile test.

The EC wrote to Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, stating that the committee appointed by it to look into the issue had concluded that Prime Minister's announcement on the Mission Shakti on Wednesday had not amounted to misuse of official mass media and thus to violation of the Model Code of Conduct.

The commission wrote to the CPI (M) general secretary that it had accepted the findings of the committee.

Yechury had on Wednesday written to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora alleging that Prime Minister had violated the Model Code of Conduct as his speech on the success of the anti-satellite missile test was aired by public broadcasters, Doordarshan and All India Radio.

The EC gave a clean chit to Prime Minister as Doordarshan and All India Radio had clarified that none of the public broadcasters had recorded his speech on “Mission Shakti”.

Yechury, however, did not accept the EC's argument. "It is sad and a matter of regret that the Constitutional Authority mandated to conduct free & (and) fair elections has allowed the deception and chicanery by Modi in blatant violation of the Model Code of Conduct," the CPI (M) general secretary tweeted, taking a jibe at the EC.

Mayank Kumar Aggarwal, Director General (DD News) of Doordarshan, wrote to the EC that the Prime Minister’s message was telecast on the news channel of the public broadcaster using the feed provided by the private news agency, Asia News International (ANI). Sanjiv Dosajh, Assistant Director of Programmes (Policy) at the All India Radio (AIR), conveyed to the poll-panel that audio output as broadcast by Doordarshan News was used for airing Prime Minister's speech on Mission Shakti over public broadcaster's radio network. Ira Joshi, Director General (News) of the AIR, wrote to the commission that the radio channel broadcast Prime Minister's speech as a news item, not as a live event.

Supriya Sahu, Director General of Doordarshan, had written to the EC that the telecast of Prime Minister's speech was not live and the source was the play out of the video as received from the ANI.

The Doordarshan DG also wrote to the commission that the public broadcaster had since long been subscribing to the ANI, which provided the visuals of news events round the clock.

The AIR top brass also informed the EC that no broadcast or technical professional of the public broadcaster had gone to record Prime Minister's speech and no production activity had been involved in the broadcast.

Soon after Prime Minister announced the success of “Mission Shakti” on TV and radio as well as on social media platforms on Wednesday, the EC constituted a committee to examine whether Prime Minister's announcement about the anti-satellite missile test had amounted to a violation of the Model Code of Conduct.

The Model Code of Conduct came into force on March 10, the day the EC announced the schedule of the Lok Sabha polls as well as the elections to the legislative assemblies in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim.

The committee, headed by Deputy Election Commissioner Sandeep Saxena, wrote to the public broadcasters, Doordarshan and All India Radio, asking them to share details about the “source” of the telecast and the broadcast of Prime Minister's speech on Mission Shakti.

“It is clear that Doordarshan has only used the feed provided by ANI. The All India Radio has taken audio output as broadcast by Doordarshan News for dissemination over All India Radio network,” the committee noted in its report to the EC, after receiving the replies from the Doordarshan and the AIR.

The committee also had meetings with the top brass of the Doordarshan and the AIR earlier on Friday.