New Delhi: Former election commissioner Ashok Lavasa stressed on the need for a more stringent model code of conduct and timely punitive action against violators for it to be an effective deterrent, in an article penned by him in The Indian Express on Tuesday (April 30).
Lavasa supported the EC’s move to send notices to parties instead of the individuals who violated the MCC, calling it a “deft move”. He said, unlike how drivers are held responsible for a traffic violation in individual capacity, punitive action against the party of such a campaigner “introduces the principle of vicarious liability”.
“Perhaps the time has come for MCC to initiate punitive action against political parties if its functionaries or star campaigners are involved in proven cases of MCC violation,” he wrote.
The EC had sent a notice to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as well as the Congress, addressing them to the party presidents J.P. Nadda and Mallikarjun Kharge, against Model Code of Conduct violations by their star campaigners. The letters did not mention the violators by name.
The election watchdog was under fire for its lack of timely response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s openly communal remarks at a Rajasthan election rally on April 21. The speech was heavily criticised and described in the global press as unprecedented hate speech.
Photo: Screengrab from video
Saying that the MCC needs “more teeth”, Lavasa wrote,” The procedure for dealing with such cases should be streamlined such that punitive action is taken within 72 hours of the violation. A standard procedure must be laid down. Delayed responses dilute the impact of penalties and diminish public confidence in the credibility of the EC.”
He argued that MCC violations need to have severe consequences especially on more serious charges such as invoking communal feelings, hate speech, using filthy language for political opponents or comments related to the Indian armed forces.
“The first case of any such violations could attract a ban on campaigning for a specified period; the second could entail a ban for a longer period and the third would debar the concerned candidate or political functionary for the entire period while the MCC is in force,” he wrote.
He said that those found to be repeatedly violating the MCC should not be eligible for being “star campaigners” even in subsequent elections for a certain period of time.
Lavasa said that if MCC violations were connected with specific provisions of extant law under various Acts, then the relevant law enforcement agency must initiate legal action against the violator even if there is not action or specific direction by the EC.
However, he maintained that no matter how stringent the MCC is made, politicians need to instil an element of self-regulation in their conduct. While stricter implementation of the MCC could potentially spare the EC of allegations of bias, a model leadership instead of a model code would inspire greater public confidence, he wrote.
