EC notice to Suvendu Adhikari for communal overtones in his speech11Photo© timesofindia.indiatimes.com

EC notice to Suvendu Adhikari for communal overtones in his speech

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The Election Commission on Thursday issued a notice to Bharatiya Janata Party leader Suvendu Adhikari for allegedly delivering hate speech while campaigning for the West Bengal Assembly elections on March 29 in Nandigram constituency, reported the Hindustan Times.

Adhikari was pitted against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the constituency. Voting in the seat was held during the second phase of the polls.

The complaint was lodged by Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) leader Kavita Krishnan. The poll panel said Adhikari has violated clauses (2) and (3) of the Model Code of Conduct. Clause (2) bars candidates from criticising the private lives of their political opponents and refrains them from making criticisms based on “unverified allegations or distortion”. Clause (3) prohibits candidates from appealing to “caste or communal feelings for securing votes”. The clause also states that religious places of worship should not be used for election propaganda.