Bihar elections: JD(U) to move EC over BJP's ad on cow

A day before Bihar votes in the final phase of the assembly elections, the BJP gave a prominent ad in newspapers featuring a woman hugging a cow

Accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to give communal colour to the Bihar Assembly polls, the Janata Dal (United) on Wednesday said that it would move the Election Commission over the recent ad in newspapers featuring a woman hugging a cow.

"This is a result of the leniency of the EC that the Bihar state unit of the BJP is trying to give communal colour to the state assembly elections. We will approach the EC and his Excellency the President of India today to report over the issue," JD(U) general secretary K C Tyagi told ANI.

"The advertisement in the newspaper on the cow is a violation of the Model Code of Conduct because you can't use religion for votes. The BJP is drunk in power, it is paying no heed to the constitutionally established institutions," he added.

A day before Bihar votes in the fifth and final phase of the assembly elections, the BJP gave a prominent ad in newspapers featuring a woman hugging a cow, attacking Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on his silenceover statements made by his allies on beef.

"Stop vote bank politics and explain whether you endorse these statements," the ad says, before listing three comments made by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and others. In each of the statements, the word beef has been highlighted in red.