Election Commission Issues Showcause Notices to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Himanta Biswa Sarma, but Not Yet to Amit Shah

The Election Commission of India has not yet responded to an earlier complaint against Home Minister Amit Shah, but it has sent showcause letters to Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for allegedly breaking the model code.

The move against Sarma was taken more than a week after he metaphorically referred to the group by the name of the lone Muslim minister in Chhattisgarh.

In a video that the Congress sent to the EC on October 19, Sarma is heard stating, "If one Akbar comes to some place, he calls 100 Akbars," during his address the day before in Kawardha. Thus, send him away as quickly as you can to prevent defilement of Mata Kaushalya's land.

Mohammed Akbar, a minister in the Congress party, is the Kawardha MLA.

During Priyanka's October 20 address in Dausa, the BJP filed a complaint on Wednesday, claiming that she had said, "I recently saw something on TV." I'm not sure whether it is accurate or not. PM Modi visited the Devnarayan temple and put money in the offering box. When it was opened, Rs. 21 emerged, leaving many to wonder what was inside.

Vadra and Sarma have till October 30 at 5 p.m. to reply.

Shah's speech in Rajnandgaon on October 16 that was recorded mentioning a victim of a communal riot and saying: "Bhupesh Baghel's government for appeasement politics, and vote bank politics, lynched Chhattisgarh's son Bhuneshwar Sahoo and got him killed" led to the Congress filing a complaint against Shah.

The Congress charged the EC with breaking "the concept of equality before the law and the conduct of 'Free and Fair' elections" during the Karnataka elections in May because it remained silent over concerns regarding speeches by Modi, Shah, and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath.