NEW DELHI: After being at the receiving end of widespread criticism for not enforcing the norms, especially when ruling party leaders – including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his right-hand man and Union Home Minister Amit Shah – are allegedly indulging in divisive speeches, the Election Commission of India said on Tuesday that top leaders of political parties should set “good examples” of campaign discourse expected of them in the ongoing Lok Sabha election.
The poll panel also asserted that it was primarily the leaders’ responsibility to correct their poll speeches in the remaining phases of the election to avoid a permanent dent on the social fabric of the country.
Coming out with its second report on the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct since the March 16 announcement of the Lok Sabha election, the commission said it has disposed of more than 90 per cent of complaints and no major complaint from parties was pending, except some by the Congress and the BJP.
“With about two months completed since the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) came into effect, campaign by various political parties and candidates at constituency level has largely remained violence-free, less noisy, less cluttered and intrusive, free of inducement...,” the commission added.
The panel and the officials manning it faced stringent criticism for not acting to control campaign speeches against Muslims, mainly by the ruling BJP.