New Delhi, 4 April 2014

Following is full text of Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP)’s memorandum before the Election Commission of India against Sonia Gandhi’s meeting with Shahi Imam.

Attention: Shri V.S. Sampath, Chief Election Commissioner

Shri H.S Brahma, Election Commissioner

Dr. Nasim Zaidi, Election Commissioner

It may kindly be recalled that in one of the recent meeting with the ECI (on the hate speech by Imran Masood in Saharanpur). We had apprised the Commission how the Congress Party is desperately trying to divert the BJP from its development oriented agenda to one of polarised communalism. Congress Party which boasts of its role as a messiah of secularism is of late turning totally communal and making desperate attempts to throw a red herring and drag the BJP into a messy dialogue on religion driven electoral politics.

The latest attempt in their mission is the reported long meeting between the Congress President (Sonia Gandhi) and the Jama Masjid Shahi Imam, Syed Ahmed Bukhari on Tuesday 1st April at her residence.

Media reports quote Jama Masjid Spokesperson Rahat Mehmood Chaudhary as having said as follows:

“The most important thing she said was that in the current political scenario in the country, secular votes should not be split in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and they should come together to vote against communal forces.”

It is a matter of amusement that coming together of one religious community which is represented by the Shahi Imam is indicative of the unity of secular forces and the people against whom they are pitted irrespective of the religion or communities in which they happen to be born should be deemed to be communal.

The reported meeting was not just a courtesy call by the Imam. On 22 February about 350 delegates are reported to have met at Jama Masjid to discuss which party the community should support. This was followed by a reported constitution of a 11 member fact finding committee to take a call on the performance and attitude of various parties towards Muslims. This committee reportedly toured around the country, met various political parties and submitted a report on 31 March. On the same day, Shri Rajiv Shukla of the Congress Party had called on the Imam and extended an invitation. The meeting with the Congress President took place on 1st April. It would thus be seen that sufficient preparatory work has been undertaken by the Congress Party in coordination with the Imam, preceding the meeting.

It is anticipated that the Imam will give his call after the Friday prayers on 4th April. Keeping this eventuality in mind, we are approaching the Hon’ble Election Commission, before the event, rather than after the event.

The likely intervention by the Shahi Imam will be nothing but communal polarisation for benefitting a party. Such an event will squarely attract the provisions of various Penal Acts such as Section 153A “Offence of promoting enemity between different groups of religion, race” (Sec 153 A of the IPC); offences in contravention of the provisions of the Religious institution (Prevention of Misuse) Act 1988; offence of conversion of a place of worship (places of worship Special Provisions Act 1991).

Besides, the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct Para 1. General Conduct—Sub para (3) is attracted which states that “There shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings for securing votes. Mosques, churches, Temples or other places of worship shall not be used as forums for election propaganda.

These developments are potent with ugly possibilities. Already the abusive and derogatory language used by various political parties is fouling up the atmosphere such as “Zahr ki Kheti”. (Sonia Gandhi) “Boti-Boti Katna” (Imran Masood) “Aag Lag Jayegi” (Prof. Yogendra Yadav of the Congress surrogate Party called the AAP). This crescendo of language culminating in the coming together of the community such that “Secular” (!) votes are not split amounts to nothing but communal polarisation, notwithstanding the reported loud denial by Smt. Sonia Gandhi.

We are confident that the Hon’ble Election Commission will take serious note of these developments and initiate preventive steps such that their efforts, as always, to conduct free and fair elections are not frustrated by determined spoilers who are aiming at communal conflagration.

(Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi)
MP (Rajya Sabha)
National Vice-President
(R. Ramakrishna)
MP (Rajya Sabha)
National Convener, Election Cell