Lok Sabha elections: Congress' 'Chowkidar Chor Hai' ad in Madhya Pradesh banned by EC

The Election Commission in Madhya Pradesh has banned the 'Chowkidar Chor Hai' advertisement of the Congress party, IANS reported on Thursday.

Election Commission of India (Source: PTI)

BHOPAL: The Election Commission in Madhya Pradesh has banned the 'Chowkidar Chor Hai' advertisement of the Congress party, IANS reported on Thursday. The poll panel has ordered an end to the broadcast of the ad. The Joint Chief Election Officer on Wednesday issued a notice to all the state district officers saying that the media certification and inspection committee has cancelled the ad certification and it should be discontinued. The Bharatiya Janata Party had earlier complained to the Chief Election Officer saying that the ad was offensive and defamatory in nature. Chief Election Officer V.L. Kantarao has directed action against the Congress, besides issuing a notice to the party. The term ‘Chowkidar’ (watchman) has been widely used by both ruling BJP as well the opposition Congress to pin down each other over the issue of corruption. Congress president Rahul Gandhi has been targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over alleged irregularities in the Rafale fighter jet deal. He has often used the "Chowkidar Chor Hai" slogan while accusing the prime minister of wrongdoings in the deal. Modi had launched the "Main Bhi Chowkidar" (I too am a watchman) campaign to blunt the Congress's "Chowkidar Chor Hai" (the watchman is a thief) jibe at him. He had prefixed his Twitter handle with 'chowkidar' and almost all BJP leaders followed suit. Meanwhile, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi filing a defamation suit against Rahul Gandhi over his "why all thieves have Modi in their name" remark. The senior BJP leader filed a criminal complaint before the court of Patna Chief Judicial Magistrate Kumar Gujnan under Section 500 of IPC (punishment for defamation) against Gandhi for his comment at a rally in Maharashtra which he claimed was defamatory to the people with Modi surname. (With inputs from agencies)