Congress leader RC Chaudhary on Sunday claimed that the BJP’s ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’, which is aimed at ensuring the implementation of the Centre’s welfarist schemes in rural India, counts as a breach of the Model Code of Conduct of the Election Commission, which is currently in force in poll-bound Rajasthan.
Alleging that no prior permission was sought from the EC for taking out such a march, the Congress leader said it was nothing but a ploy by the BJP-led Centre to influence the upcoming elections in Rajasthan and elsewhere.
As part of ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’, which is likely to be launched after Diwali, specially customised vehicles or ‘raths’ will roll out to the length and breadth of the country, reaching the targeted beneficiaries of central schemes and ensuring that they are being implemented properly.
Speaking to ANI on Sunday, Chaudhary said, “A letter was issued by the Income Tax Department, Finance Ministry of the central government, on October 18. The government officials in charge of these chariots will go inside every panchayat as part of the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’.”
“The Model Code of Conduct is already in force in five states from October 9. The Centre couldn’t bring much development in the nine years of its rule at the Centre. Today, through this yatra, it is trying to attract votes, in violation of the Model Code of Conduct,” he added.
“The Election Commission should ensure that the Model Code of Conduct is followed by all political parties in good faith. We submitted a memorandum today to the state election committee chief and registered our protest against the Centre’s violation of the Model Code of Conduct. The code is being flouted with impunity as no prior permission for the yatra was sought. The Centre wants to influence voters through such yatras. We want the elections to be free and fair and, in order to ensure that this happens, the MCC should apply to such marches as well,” Chaudhary added.
To ensure full saturation of all welfare schemes within six months, the central government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is set to launch the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’ across the country, sources said on Saturday.
The sources said at a recent meeting with top brass, Prime Minister Modi stressed the need to expedite the saturation of welfare schemes.