New Delhi, March 26: A group of former civil servants on Tuesday urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to delay the release of a biopic on Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the Lok Sabha elections are around the corner, reported The Scroll. The movie, 'PM Narendra Modi' was set to release on April 5. According to the report, 47 civil servants wrote a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC).

In the letter, they said that the movie would benefit PM Modi and his party in the elections. The civil servants also asked the EC that it must stop the release of the movie in cinema halls, YouTube, Netflix, Hotstar, Facebook and on other platforms. The movie’s release was preponed to April 5 from April 12. Vivek Oberoi is portraying the role of the Prime Minister.

Earlier in the day, a delegation of the CPI and the CPI(M) met Election Commission officials and demanded that release of the film based on the life of PM Modi should be deferred, claiming it to be a "propaganda material". CPI's D Raja and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Nilotpal Basu met the poll panel officials on Monday and also pointed out serious law and order situations in Tripura and West Bengal.

Yesterday, the Congress moved the EC to get the release of the biopic movie deferred till the final phase voting in the Lok Sabha polls. Earlier, even the DMK had written to the Election Commission and asked for a stay on the movie. The parties said that releasing the movie before the elections would violate the Mode of Conduct which came into effect from March 10. The Lok Sabha elections will take place across the nation in seven phases, beginning from April 11 and would conclude on May 19. The results will be declared on May 23.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 26, 2019 09:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).