A factual report had been sent to the Election Commission over Mayawati's remark (File)
Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati's comment in which she had asked the Muslim community not to split its votes in the national election, has landed her in trouble as the Election Commission issued a notice to her saying the remark was in violation of the election code of conduct. The poll body further said she would have to respond to the notice within 24 hours.
The commission said that the Supreme Court has held that religion and caste cannot be used in poll campaign.
"The commission is prima facie of the opinion that you have violated the provisions of MCC and willfully disobeyed order of the Supreme Court," the order said.
Mayawati had made the remark at a rally in Deoband when she was sharing the stage with her alliance partners--Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav and Rashtriya Lok Dal's Ajit Singh.
"I want to make an open appeal. It is not the Congress but the (SP-BSP-RLD) alliance which is fighting the BJP. The Congress wants to ensure that the alliance does not win. The Congress is trying to help the BJP in this election," she had said.
A factual report had been sent to the Election Commission over the remark.
The development came on a day when her bitter rival--BJP's Yogi Adityanath-- also got a poll body notice for a comment he made in response to her remark.
"If the Congress, the SP and the BSP have faith in Ali, then we too have faith in Bajrang Bali. The opposition has acknowledged that the followers of Bajrang Bali will not vote for them," Yogi Adityanath had said at a rally in Uttar Pradesh.
This was the second notice Yogi Adityanath received this month. He was reprimanded by the Election Commission last week, days after he referred to the Indian Army as "Modiji ki Sena", or Prime Minister Narendra Modi's army, at an election rally in Uttar Pradesh.
With inputs from PTI