Jan Suraaj alleges model code violations by BJP in Bankipur, moves ECI

The Jan Suraaj Party on Friday, 17 July approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) alleging violations of the model code of conduct (MCC) by the BJP in Bihar's Bankipur Assembly constituency, where the ruling party faces a challenge from Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor in an upcoming bypoll.

Addressing a press conference in state capital Patna, Jan Suraaj Party state president Manoj Bharti said a high-level party delegation had submitted a memorandum to Bihar's chief electoral officer detailing the alleged violations.

"Our memorandum has highlighted that BJP workers have been prowling the streets of Patna, posing as municipal corporation workers. They have been tearing our posters and banners off the walls of houses, even though we had obtained the consent of the owners," Bharti alleged.

He claimed that BJP posters and banners were subsequently pasted on the same walls. "When we have confronted some of these self-proclaimed municipal workers, demanding their identity cards, they have run away. The EC must step in to prevent this serious breach of the model code of conduct," he said.

Bharti also alleged that the BJP had circulated "false and misleading posters" targeting Prashant Kishor.

The Bankipur bypoll was necessitated after BJP national president Nitin Nabin resigned from the Assembly following his election to the Rajya Sabha earlier this year.

Kishor, seeking to revive his fledgling party after its poor performance in last year's state Assembly elections, has described the bypoll as a "referendum" on the popularity of the BJP-led government in Bihar.

The BJP, which has held the seat continuously since 1995, has fielded Neeraj Kumar Sinha, a relatively low-profile leader from its youth wing, a move widely seen as reflecting the party's confidence in retaining the constituency. In recent days, the BJP has also inducted several Jan Suraaj leaders, including some who had contested last year's Assembly elections on the party's ticket.

Bharti further urged the ECI to ensure that volunteers from women's self-help groups were not deployed inside or around polling stations, unlike during the Assembly polls held in November. Kishor has repeatedly alleged that Jeevika volunteers, members of self-help groups, acted as agents of the NDA during the Assembly elections by persuading rural women to support the BJP-led alliance after they received Rs 10,000 each under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana.

The Jan Suraaj memorandum also objected to what it described as instances of Central paramilitary personnel being allowed inside polling booths instead of remaining outside to provide security.

"We hope that the EC will take necessary action on all our complaints to ensure a free and fair poll. We also urge voters of the constituency to remember that the poll symbol of the Jan Suraaj Party is the schoolbag," Bharti said.

Voting for the Bankipur bypoll will be held on 30 July, with counting scheduled for 3 August. While the contest is primarily being viewed as a direct fight between Kishor and the BJP candidate, several others are also in the fray, including the RJD's Rekha Gupta, who finished runner-up in last year's Assembly election.

The nomination papers of Veena Manvi, the candidate of the Janshakti Janata Dal led by Tej Pratap Yadav, the estranged elder son of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, have been rejected.

With PTI inputs