Several statements of PM Modi violate Model Code of Conduct: Sitaram Yechury
Kozhikode (Kerala), Apr 18: CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of making statements which were allegedly violative of the Model Code of Conduct during his Lok Sabha poll campaign in various parts of the country.
Yechury said that he has given a complaint in this regard to the Election Commission listing out the statements made by Modi allegedly "aimed at sharpening communal polarisation on the issue of Ram".
The veteran CPI(M) leader was speaking to the media in this north Kerala district where he also criticised the Congress and the UDF for accusing the Left front of not opposing Modi and the BJP.
He said that it was "strange" that the Congress and the UDF were accusing the LDF, particularly the CPI(M), of being silent on attacking Modi.
Yechury said that he was one of the first political leaders to be arrested for opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the Left party was the one which moved a habeas corpus plea in the Supreme Court against alleged detention of politicians in Kashmir after Article 370 was abrogated and the CPI(M) was also the first to oppose the electoral bonds in the top court.
He said that in all these issues and various others, it was the CPI(M) which was at the front opposing the saffron party and questioned "in all these instances where were those who charge us with not opposing the BJP".
Yechury's statement came in the wake of the social media campaign against CPI(M)'s Vatakara LS candidate K K Shailaja.
Terming the campaign against her as "virulent and obscene", he said that it indicates that she has won the election.
Yechury also urged the Congress to introspect as many of their leaders have left the party to join the BJP.
"But they attack us by saying that we are not anti-Modi. So, let us talk on the basis of facts and substance and not on the basis of personal attacks," he said.
The Marxist veteran further said that decorum needs to be maintained by all during political campaigning.
"My only appeal to everybody concerned is to definitely criticise, campaign against and attack our political position and policies, but do not go to such lengths as to telling untruths and conducting personal attacks. Let us maintain the decorum of the campaign," he said.
An activist of Congress-ally Indian Union Muslim League has been booked by police for allegedly making objectionable remarks on social media platforms against Shailaja.
The CPI(M) has lodged a complaint with the Election Commission against Congress candidate from Vatakara Shafi Parambil, alleging that the cyber attack on Shailaja was being carried out with his knowledge.
The Congress rubbished the charges of malicious campaigning against Shailaja by UDF activists and had said the ruling party was trying to cook up stories as the election campaign was nearing the final stage.
The Lok Sabha elections will be held in Kerala on April 26 and the results will be declared on June 4.
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Uddhav Thackeray had contacted Fadnavis as well as me after his govt faced crisis: CM Shinde
Nashik, May 2: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday claimed that Uddhav Thackeray had reached out to him and offered the chief minister's post after his rebellion plunged the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state in a crisis in 2022.
He also termed as correct the claim made by deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis that Thackeray, then chief minister, had contacted the BJP leader too and offered the top post.
The Thackeray government collapsed in June 2022 after Shinde and the majority of Shiv Sena MLAs rebelled against the party leadership.
"There is truth to the claim as they made these efforts when we decided to leave. They (Thackeray and his associates) also called me and offered the CM's post, but I had not taken the decision to be the chief minister then. We left because they had deviated from Shiv Sena supremo late Balasaheb Thackeray's ideology," Shinde told reporters here.
He was replying to a question about Fadnavis's claim that Uddhav Thackeray had offered him the chief minister's post after Shinde rebelled and the MVA government was about to fall. Thackeray had parted ways with the BJP earlier in 2019 and formed government with the NCP and Congress.
"They also made efforts in Delhi, saying the entire Shiv Sena will be with them (BJP) and asked BJP leaders not to take only some people (i.e., Shinde and his supporters) in their fold. But by then, 50 people (MLAs) were already with me. What Devendra ji has said has truth to it," Shinde said.
Asked for comment, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sachin Ahir questioned the time chosen by Shinde and Fadnavis to make these claims.
"They are making such statements after two years only to create confusion," he said.
