Kolkata, April 16 -- Trinamool Congress (TMC) has filed a written complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) against former Union minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani, Leader of Opposition in the state Suvendu Adhikari and other members of the saffron camp for announcing the 'Matrishakti Bhorsa' card on Wednesday.
The BJP has promised a monthly allowance of Rs 3,000 for women beneficiaries of the proposed scheme. TMC has sought ECI's intervention, saying that it was a breach of the Model Code of Conduct (MMC).
"They have been distributing forms of the said newly introduced scheme at various places. Such acts constitute a grave violation of the MCC and the rules and regulations prescribed by the ECI," TMC wrote in the letter. The ruling party also alleged that under the garb of such announcement, women are being induced to fill and submit forms, pursuant to which money is being disbursed, either through direct bank transfers or in cash.
"The operation appears to be organised and widespread, involving multiple individuals acting in concert, thereby evidencing a deliberate and premeditated strategy. The targeted beneficiaries, primarily women from economically vulnerable sections, are particularly susceptible to such inducements, underscoring an unlawful attempt to secure electoral advantage through material gratification and undue influence," the complaint read.
"Such conduct strikes at the very foundation of free and fair elections by compromising the independence of the voter's choice and vitiating the level playing field among contesting parties," added the letter.
TMC also claimed that the aforesaid acts constitute 'corrupt practice' within the meaning of Section 123 of the RPA, 1951, and attract penal liability under Sections 61(2)/173/174 of the BNS, 2023. Any delay in taking decisive action would risk causing irreversible harm to the integrity of the electoral process and the democratic framework, it alleged.
The Bengal unit of the BJP symbolically launched a 'Yuva Shakti' card in the presence of Olympic medalists - Leander Paes and Vijender Singh Beniwal at a Press conference in Kolkata on Thursday. Meanwhile, the TMC also accused Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman of breaching MCC as she distributed weaver cards to handloom weavers in Bengal on Wednesday. TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee filed a complaint with the ECI, alleging the distribution constituted "direct inducement" and an attempt to influence voters.
"The act of distributing benefits is a direct attempt to unduly influence the free exercise of electoral rights," he said.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.