Congress, BJP engage in war of words over Assam CM's 'Akbar' remark

New Delhi [India], October 27 : The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have engaged in a war of words over Assam Chief Minister and BJP leader, Himanta Biswa Sarma's 'Akbar' remark made during a public speech in poll-bound Chhattisgarh's Kawardha.
The Congress on Thursday moved to the Election Commission (EC) against Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, alleging a poll code violation by the latter during a speech made in poll-bound Chhattisgarh.
Taking to 'X', Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote, "Yesterday, the Congress party brought to the attention of the Election Commission of India serious electoral malpractices by senior leaders of the party in power. The ECI has observed prima facie the violation of the Model Code of Conduct by the Assam CM for his obnoxious hate speech on the 18th of October in Chhattisgarh. He is actually a serial offender".
"We hope that the ECI will follow through and take this case to its logical conclusion. Politicians, especially those holding Constitutional positions, cannot and should not be allowed to get away with such blatant violations of the Model Code of Conduct. It is the only way to stop the poisoning of our public discourse and protect the sanctity of our elections and democracy itself", he added.
Following this, the EC issued a show-cause notice to Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma over his speech during the Chhattisgarh poll campaign.
The Election Commission in the show-cause notice mentioned that certain parts of Himanta Biswa Sarma's speech on October 18 have been found to be "prima facia violative".
The EC has asked Assam CM Himanata Biswa Sarma to be present before 5 p.m. on October 30, 2023.
"You are hereby called upon to show cause by 17:00 hrs of 30th October 2023, (Monday) as to why appropriate action of violation on Model code of conduct should not be taken against you.", the notice read.
The notice further mentioned that in case of the absence of the BJP leader, the Election Commission will take appropriate action or decision.
Meanwhile, in response to the allegation by the Congress party, Assam CM took to 'X' and wrote, "Congress has withheld the material information from the Hon'ble Election Commission that Mohammed Akbar is their candidate from Kawardha Constituency. Therefore legitimate criticism of a candidate does not amount to communal politics".
"Cong will have to face the legal consequence of not revealing this crucial fact in their representation. I have full faith in the collection wisdom of the Hon'ble Election Commission", he added.
Himanta Biswa Sarma while campaigning in Kawardha, made a statement that stirred a row.
"When one Akbar arrives in a particular location, he brings along a hundred Akbars. Therefore, it is crucial to remove him swiftly or else the sanctity of Mata Kaushalya's land will be compromised", he said addressing an election rally.
This comes as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday released its fourth and final list of candidates for the upcoming Chhattisgarh Assembly elections, fielding party leader Rajesh Agarwal from Ambikapur constituency against state Deputy Chief Minister TS Singh Deo.
The first phase of polling for 20 seats in Chhattisgarh will be held on November 7 and the remaining 70 seats in the state will go to polls on November 17. The counting of votes will be done on December 3.