New Delhi:
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday clarified that no dates have been announced for the Lok Sabha elections yet.
ECI said a fake message was shared on WhatsApp regarding the election manifesto, adding that the dates will be announced by the commission through a press conference.
“A fake message is being shared on WhatsApp about the schedule for #LokSabhaElections2024 #FactCheck: The message is #Fake. No dates have been announced by #ECI so far. The election manifesto will be announced by the Commission through a press conference. #VerifyBeforeYouAmplify,” ECI said in a post on X.
A fake message is shared on Whats-app about the planning for #LokSabhaElections2024#Factchecking: The message is #Fake. No dates have been announced yet #ECI.
The election program will be announced by the Commission through a press conference. #VerifyBeforeYouAmplifypic.twitter.com/DAZlNFOF5W
— Election Commission of India (@ECISVEEP) March 8, 2024
The Electoral Commission took note of the various trends and instances where the level of political campaign discourse plummeted during the recently held elections and earlier in February this year issued an advisory to all political parties to maintain decorum and utmost restraint in public campaigns and increase the level of public campaigning. election campaigns into an 'issue-based' debate.
According to sources, the Election Commission will assess all indirect MCC violations as advised as a fair basis for reworking the notices to be issued in terms of time and content in the upcoming elections.
For the general elections to the Lok Sabha and the four state legislatures, all phases and geographical areas of the elections will be the basis for determining “recidivism” offences.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar recently emphasized that political parties must foster ethical and respectful political discourse that inspires rather than divides and promotes ideas rather than personal attacks. The poll body has also 'notified' 'star campaigners' and candidates in case of violations following the previously known methodologies during elections to avoid violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)