‘Shah’s taught a lesson remarks implied people had taken law into their hands…EC should act’ 

• Former bureaucrat, activist demand a probe and necessary punishment in the matter
• Home minister’s statement was “in violation of section 153A of the IPC
• ‘Several incumbents of the office of the Commission in the past had demonstrated the authority of the Commission in its full measure’

Days after Union Home Minister Amit Shah provocatively remarked that “criminals in Gujarat were taught a lesson in 2002”, eminent citizens have sought election commission of India to take action against the BJP leader under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

They claimed that Shah’s statement violated Section 153A of the IPC which pertains to “promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc…. “. Further, they added it attracts Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 — which provides for disqualification for conviction for various sections of IPC including Section 153 A, according to The Wire.

Former secretary to Government of India E.A.S. Sarma had in a letter marked to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners A.C. Pandey and A. Goel on November 26 raised the issue of Shah’s comment during a rally in Mahudha town of Kheda district. He said Shah’s statement implied that other than the law enforcement authorities, it was a political party and certain sections of the people who “taught a lesson” to others by taking law into their own hands.  ‘Taught a lesson’ implied people had taken law into their own hands

Shah’s statement then “violates the Model Code of Conduct in force”, especially with reference to clause which lays down that “there shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings for securing votes”, said the former bureaucrat.

Echoing Sarma’s view, social activist and academic Jagdeep Chhokar said that the home minister’s statement was “in violation of section 153A of the IPC. He also wrote to the Election Commission recently about the alleged violation of the MCC by Shah through his statement.

He demanded that the EC Commission should immediately direct deferment of the elections in Gujarat “till such time that the environment becomes conducive to conducting elections freely and fairly”.

Sarma also noted how “several incumbents of the office of the Commission in the past had demonstrated the authority of the Commission in its full measure and the people of this country, who repose trust in the Commission’s authority as an independent institution”, according to the Wire. He said the Commission should “act objectively with the sole purpose of safeguarding the integrity and fairness of the electoral process, impervious to extraneous influences”.

“The Commission cannot afford to permit political parties to indulge in divisive exhortations to the electorate and thereby influence elections against the public interest,” he added.

-INDIA NEWS STREAM