India News | Cong Accuses MP Minister Govind Singh Rajput of Poll Code Violation, Demands Dismissal
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The Congress on Tuesday accused Madhya Pradesh minister Govind Singh Rajput of inducing voters and workers with money ahead of the assembly elections in the state and demanded he be dismissed and debarred from contesting.
New Delhi, Oct 24 (PTI) The Congress on Tuesday accused Madhya Pradesh minister Govind Singh Rajput of inducing voters and workers with money ahead of the assembly elections in the state and demanded he be dismissed and debarred from contesting.
Congress leader Shobha Oza also claimed that the Election Commission has booked Rajput for model code violation after a Congress worker made a complaint against him.
At a press conference here, Oza played a video purportedly showing Rajput, an MLA representing the Surkhi assembly segment, telling party workers that he would award Rs 25 lakh to in-charges of booths that get more votes for the BJP.
She said the Model Code of Conduct is in place in Madhya Pradesh and leaders of the BJP who know they are going to lose the elections are continuously engaging in malpractice and trying to influence voters.
Oza also shared a video of senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya purportedly saying he would pay Rs 51,000 to in-charges of booths where no votes are polled for the Congress.
She said Rajput was close to Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. Oza alleged that Scindia talks about taking to the streets and fighting for the people but those close to him were involved in corruption and talking of "buying votes".
The Congress leader said party worker Sandeep Singh Baghel lodged a complaint with the Chief Election Commissioner and the State Election Commission and thanked the poll body for registering an FIR against Govind Singh Rajput under section 123 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and section 178 of the IPC.
Shobha Oza is a former president of the All India Mahila Congress.
"We demand that strict action be taken against ministers and leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party who have been involved in corrupt activities... like Kailash Vijayvargia and Govind Singh Rajput. We appeal to the governor to immediately dismiss Govind Singh Rajput...," Oza said.
"We demand that they (such BJP candidates) be banned from contesting elections and their assets investigated to ascertain how they have collected so much money. We also demand answers from BJP president J P Nadda and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as to why they are trying to win elections in Madhya Pradesh through such corrupt practices," the Congress leader said.
Asked why no complaint was filed against Vijayvargiya, she said the BJP leader had allegedly made the offer prior to the enforcement of the model code. Oza, however, asserted that her party would file a complaint in case he did it again.
"The BJP knows that its roots have been uprooted because of corruption in Madhya Pradesh in the last 18 years and the public will uproot such people this time," the Congress leader claimed.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)