Clean chit to PM on Balakot ‘ballots appeal’

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Wednesday concluded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in Latur last month in which he had urged first time voters to dedicate their votes in the name of the Balakot airstrike heroes and the soldiers killed in the Pulwama attack, is not violative of its instructions on invoking armed forces in poll campaigns.

It also found that Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath’s remarks on defence forces were not violative of the model code. Attacking the Prime Minister, Kamal Nath had on April 14 said that even when Mr Modi was a child, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi had built the country’s defence forces. He was addressing a rally at Harsud in Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh.

Referring to the Prime Minister’s statement in Latur, the commission said, “The matter has been examined in detail in accordance with the extant advisories, provisions of the Model Code of Conduct and after examination of complete transcript of speech of 11 pages as per the certified copy sent by the returning officer, Osmanabad parliamentary constituency, the commission is of the considered view that in this matter no such violation of the extant advisories/provisions is attracted.”

Addressing a rally in Ausa in Maharashtra’s Latur on April 9, Mr Modi had said, “Can your first vote be dedicated to those who carried out the airstrike.”

“I want to tell the first-time voters: can your first vote be dedicated to the veer jawans (valiant soldiers) who carried out the airstrike in Pakistan. Can your first vote be dedicated to the veer shaheed (brave martyrs) of Pulwama (terror attack),” Mr Modi had said.

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