Former IAS officer questions ECI if they are afraid to act on complaints against PM Modi
New Delhi: Former IAS officer E.A.S. Sarma expressed disappointment with the Election Commission of India (ECI) for not responding to his letter, raising concerns about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent speech, which he believed may have violated election campaign rules.
Sarma lodged a complaint with the ECI on Friday, drawing attention to a speech made by Modi during a visit to Tamil Nadu earlier in the week. In his complaint, Sarma referenced Modi's reported remarks regarding Hindu beliefs in "nari shakti" and "matru shakti," accusing the INDIA opposition bloc of insulting Hinduism.
“In its rally in Mumbai’s Shivaji Park, the ‘INDI Alliance’ openly announced that it wants to destroy the shakti that the Hindu religion has faith in. Everyone in Tamil Nadu knows what shakti means in the Hindu religion,” he is heard saying in a video of the speech.
Modi also said that several temples devoted to goddesses in Tamil Nadu were the ‘shakti of this place’ and said that in Hinduism, the term refers to matru shakti and nari shakti.
“The people of the ‘INDI Alliance’ repeatedly and deliberately insult the Hindu religion,” the prime minister also said.
Sarma said that these statements violated the model code of conduct and urged the ECI to take action against Modi if the report he cited was found true.
“Invoking the religious sentiments by a political leader during elections brazenly violates the model code of conduct … If what has been reported is factually correct, the commission should act on this urgently and initiate deterrent, exemplary proceedings against the person making such a statement,” Sarma had said in his March 22 letter.
However, as of Monday, Sarma had not received a response from the commission regarding his complaint. In a follow-up letter, he questioned whether the ECI was hesitant to act independently and raised concerns about the commission's impartiality, particularly in light of recent changes in the law governing the appointment of election commissioners.
Sarma emphasized the importance of the ECI addressing his concerns publicly to dispel any perception of bias or reluctance to uphold its duty to ensure fair and impartial elections.
The model code of conduct, enforced by the ECI, aims to regulate the behavior of governments, political parties, and politicians during election periods to maintain fairness and integrity in the electoral process. Violations of the code can result in notices and punitive action by the commission, which has the authority to enforce its provisions to ensure free and fair elections.
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Karnataka Cabinet ratifies decisions on internal reservation for SCs
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka Cabinet has ratified its earlier decisions on internal reservation for Scheduled Castes and approved key modifications to streamline recruitment, including withdrawal and reissue of notifications and adoption of a 400-point roster system.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil on Thursday said the Cabinet reaffirmed its commitment to implementing internal reservation within the 15 per cent SC quota and expediting long-pending recruitment across departments.
"The Cabinet ratified decisions taken in earlier meetings (April 16 and April 24) and made modifications regarding reservation policies," Patil said.
He said the government will implement internal reservation within the 15 per cent quota for Scheduled Castes in specified proportions and revise recruitment notifications accordingly, with a 400-point roster to be followed.
If fewer than three roster points for SC arise in recruitment, then all 101 Scheduled Caste communities will be allowed to compete under SC general, he said.
Patil added that recruitment notifications issued without incorporating internal reservation will be withdrawn and reissued in line with the revised policy.
"If the Supreme Court approves 24 per cent reservation for SC/ST, six per cent backlog posts will be filled," he said, noting that urgent steps will be taken to fill 56,432 approved posts.
The latest decision follows the Cabinet's April 24 resolution that cleared a revised internal reservation formula within the overall 15 per cent SC quota, paving the way for long-pending government recruitment. The government had approved 5.25 per cent reservation each for the "right-hand" and "left-hand" groups, and about 4.5 per cent for other Scheduled Castes, including nomadic communities.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had then said the categorisation was worked out proportionately within the constitutional ceiling. "From tomorrow onwards, the recruitment process will begin with the issuance of notifications," he had said after the April 24 Cabinet meeting.
He also noted that the SC quota was fixed at 15 per cent and ST at three per cent in line with the 50 per cent cap laid down in the Indra Sawhney case, while pointing out that the Supreme Court had permitted internal reservation within constitutional limits.
