Citizens and civil society organisations from across India say they are coming together to hold the ECI accountable.
Citizens and civil society organizaations from across India are coming together to urge the Election Commission of India to take action against hate speech.
Amid the surge in the number of hate speech complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders, citizens and civil society groups across India are set to launch a campaign — #GrowASpineOrResign — to pull up the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) over its continued silence on them.
The campaign is set to commence at 11 am on Saturday, 11 May, with several citizens and civil rights organisations coming together to hold the ECI accountable.
Individuals and civil society organisations from cities like Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Mysuru reportedly plan on sending postcards to the ECI and holding demonstrations in their respective cities.
Meanwhile, protestors in Delhi are said to be preparing to personally deliver postcards to the chief election commissioner.
📢
A nationwide call to remind the Election Commission of India of its Constitutional duties and awaken its conscience if any.🗓️ 11 May 2024
🕚 11 am#GrowASpineOrResign pic.twitter.com/xdN5E0sf6h
— Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) May 10, 2024
The protest is expected to commence days ahead of the fourth phase of voting in the Lok Sabha elections, which is set to take place on 13 May.
While three phases have been held, the last three phases are slated for 20 May, 25 May, and 1 June. The counting of votes will take place on 4 June.
One concern the participants in this campaign have cited is that voter turnout data has been shared only in percentages but not in numbers, raising concerns about vote-count manipulation.
The other is the perceived failure to combat hate speech during elections and using the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) against only the Opposition party leaders.
Several civil society organisations — including the National Alliance for People’s Movements, Bahutva Karnataka, All India Lawyers Association for Justice, Bharat Bachao Andolan, and Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy — are said to be coming together to take part in this national campaign.
(Edited by Neena)
May 20, 2024
May 20, 2024
May 20, 2024
May 20, 2024
May 20, 2024
May 20, 2024
