EC bans BJP’s Rahul Sinha from campaigning in Bengal over provocative comments
Rahul Sinha, the BJP's candidate in Habra constituency has been barred from campaigning after a provocative comment that not four, but eight people should have been shot by the central forces in Cooch Behar's Sitalkuchi.
BJP leader Rahul Sinha has been banned from campaigning for 48 hours in Bengal over provocative statements and for “inciting central forces”, the Election Commission said today.
On Saturday, violence broke out at one polling station of the Sitalkuchi seat in Cooch Behar, where four people died after the CISF fired at them and one died due to firing by unknown persons. The CISF claimed that some people tried to snatch away their weapons from them hence they had to resort to firing. This all happened after Mamta Banerjee earlier had called out to ” Gherao ” central forces.
“Not four, eight people should have been shot dead in Sitalkuchi. The central forces should be issued a show-cause notice asking why they killed only four and not eight…Goons are trying to deprive people of their democratic rights. Central forces responded appropriately. If it happens again, they will answer again,” Sinha told the press on Sunday evening.
Sinha reportedly blamed the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the fifth death that occurred on the same day. “An 18-year-old boy was shot dead in public at a polling station for supporting BJP and their leader is Mamata Banerjee,” he told the press.
The TMC on Monday urged the Election Commission to take strict action against BJP leaders(a similar comment was made by BJP state president Dilip Ghosh ) who allegedly made inflammatory remarks over the Cooch Behar firing incident that claimed the lives of “four unarmed civilians”.
Habra the constituency from where Rahul Ghosh is contesting is due to vote on April 22 in the sixth phase of the West Bengal polls.
In its statement, the Election Commission said Sinha had made a speech on Monday (April 12) in which he made provocative comments on last week’s firing incident in Cooch Behar that left four people dead during the fourth phase of polls.
The Election Commission noted Sinha had said, “The Central forces have given them (protesters) a befitting answer… The Central forces should have killed eight persons instead of four… The Central force should be issued a show-cause notice as to why they have killed only four of them.”
The Election Commission noted Sinha had made “highly provocative statements mocking the human life, inciting the forces that could have serious law and order implications.”
In addition, to warning Sinha, the Election Commission banned him from campaigning from 12 pm on Tuesday to 12 pm on April 15. A similar kind of ban was issued on Mamta Banerjee for her own provocative comments which had resulted in EC being called out as being ” partial and a stooge of the central government ” by the TMC and a certain section of the media. This ban against a BJP leader proves that EC is impartial against all political parties and must be commended for its work in conducting free and fair elections, at a scale seen nowhere in this world. EC as an institution has upheld ethical standards to be observed during a democratic election process.
