Rajasthan SEC seeks reports over alleged MCC violation by Chief Minister

Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore has accused Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot of flouting the model code of conduct of the EC while visiting Congress leader Sonia Gandhi in Delhi

The Chief Electoral Officer of Rajasthan, Praveen Gupta, has requested factual reports over the alleged poll code violation by Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, according to a report by the Times of India. The State Election Commission (SEC) has asked the principal secretaries of personnel and general administration departments regarding allegations made by the Leader of Opposition, Rajendra Rathore, against the CM and principal secretary Kuldeep Ranka.

Rathore accused Gehlot of violating the model code of conduct (MCC) by visiting Congress leader Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi in his official vehicle. The reports will address issues such as using official vehicles and resources during political trips. Rathore had uploaded a video on X (formerly known as Twitter) that allegedly showed Gehlot, accompanied by Kuldeep Ranka, visiting Sonia Gandhi's bungalow in his official vehicle, violating the MCC guidelines that allow only one non-gazetted personal assistant for the chief minister during political trips.

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With the video, Rathore wrote, "Pseudo Gandhi of Marwar, who swears by constitutional institutions, CM Ashok Gehlot is himself openly flouting the model code of conduct of the EC. On the second day of the MCC, the chief minister reached Sonia Gandhi's bungalow in his official vehicle along with principal secretary IAS Kuldeep Ranka, which is a complete violation of the MCC."

On Friday, Rajasthan BJP leader Arun Chaturvedi also accused the Chief Minister of violating the MCC for the same incident. He added that other appointments and announcements made during the code's implementation by the CM were also violations. Chaturvedi stated that the BJP was planning to file a complaint with the Election Commission, requesting the removal of Gehlot's photographs from government promotional material and documents.

The MCC stipulates the following for the party in power, "(a) The Ministers shall not combine their official visit with electioneering work and shall not also make use of official machinery or personnel during the electioneering work. (b) Government transport including official air-crafts, vehicles, machinery and personnel shall not be used for furtherance of the interest of the party in power."

The MCC is enforced from the date of notification of the election, which was on Monday, October 9. Reports are being sought to investigate these allegations.

The Rajasthan state Assembly elections, which will take place on Saturday, November 25.

(With agency inputs)