Rahul's interaction with students of Tamil Nadu college didn't violate poll code: EC
Chennai, Mar 21: The Election Commission Thursday said Congress President Rahul Gandhi's interaction with students at a women's college here did not violate the model code of conduct, though it has sought a report on his speech.
Tamil Nadu's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Satyabrata Sahoo said local election officials have reported that there was no violation in terms of permission obtained by Stella Maris College for Women to host the interaction on March 13.
He said the District Electoral Officer (DEO) has informed him that "there was permission" for Gandhi's event. "So, there is no violation of MCC."
However, Sahoo has sought "further information" on Gandhi's speech.
"Have sought further information on what kind of speech was given... have asked the DEO to give report based on the speech content," Sahoo said.
Earlier, the Tamil Nadu government had ordered an inquiry as to how the college gave its approval for Gandhi to interact with its students when the model code for elections was in force.
The Director of Collegiate Education, R Sarumathi, had directed a subordinate official to inquire into the matter.
In his interaction with the students, the Congress president had promised 33 per cent reservation in government jobs for women and answered several of their questions.
He had also brought up the issue of the Rafale deal and reiterated his allegations about the pricing of the aircraft and the process.
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Nine dead as fire breaks out in residential building in east Delhi
New Delhi (PTI): A fire broke out in a residential building in east Delhi's Vivek Vihar early Sunday, leaving nine people belonging to two families dead, including a toddler, officials said.
The incident was reported around 3.48 am at a four-storey building in Vivek Vihar Phase-I, following which police, fire and disaster management teams rushed to the spot.
According to the police, the blaze engulfed flats on the second, third and fourth floors of the building, prompting a large-scale rescue operation.The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) said nine charred bodies were recovered from different floors.
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"One body was recovered from the first floor, five from the second floor and three from the staircase which was found locked," the DFS officer said.
Those found dead on the second floor have been identified as Arvind Jain (60), his wife Anita Jain (58), son Nishant Jain (35), daughter-in-law Anchal Jain (33) and grandchild Akash Jain.
On the third floor, three members of a family were found dead. They were identified as Nitin Jain (50), wife Shailey Jain (48) and son Samyak Jain (25).
On the first floor a woman identified as Shikha Jain (45) was found dead while her husband Naveen Jain (48) sustained injuries.
A senior police officer said, "Around 10 to 15 people were rescued from the premises during the firefighting operation. Two of them, who sustained minor injuries, were shifted to the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital."
A total of 12 fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the flames, while teams from the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), traffic police and local police assisted in the rescue and evacuation efforts.
Police said the fire was brought under control after several hours. Efforts are underway to determine the cause of the fire, police said.
Further investigation and proceedings are underway.
