BJP office on temple premises sparks row

NURPUR BEDI, Sept 1: The election office of the Bharatiya Janata Party on the premises of Mahaveer Temple here may snowball into a contro...

NURPUR BEDI, Sept 1: The election office of the Bharatiya Janata Party on the premises of Mahaveer Temple here may snowball into a controversy, with both the rival Congress and the district administration terming it a violation of the model code of conduct.

Though the BJP activists say the election office is housed only inside the shop that belongs to the temple committee, election norms clearly bar political parties from using places of worship as a forum for poll propaganda.

At present, the office is housed inside a booth that faces the Roopnagar-Anandpur Sahib route and is part of the temple premises. A poster of the BJP prime ministerial candidate Atal Behari Vajpayee hangs on one side, while BJP flags flutter on the roof of the Sarvhitkari School inside the temple complex.

BJP district secretary Vijay Kumar Puri, who is also the Block president, confirmed that the shop where the election office is housed belongs to the temple committee. quot;We have hired it for Rs 500,quot; he disclosed, but sought to clarify that this was not a code violation as the temple gate was at the backside of the office. 8220;We are not canvassing from inside the temple. It is hardly a violation,quot; he added.

When contacted, Roopnagar Deputy Commissioner Kulbir Singh Sidhu admitted that using a religious place as a forum for poll canvassing amounted to code violation but expressed his inability to take action saying, quot;Nurpur Bedi does not fall under my jurisdiction, though it is part of Roopnagar district.quot; Since the town is part of the Hoshiarpur constituency, he said only the Deputy Commissioner of that district can initiate some action in his capacity as the returning officer.

Hoshiarpur Deputy Commissioner Iqbal Singh Sidhu, when contacted, said he had received no formal complaint in this regard. He added that he would ask the Assistant Returning Officer to probe into the matter and action will be taken after going into the merits of the case.

Meanwhile, former Congress MLA from Anandpur Sahib Ramesh Dutt alleged that the BJP was taking advantage of being in power in the state. quot;Officers have turned a blind eye to the violations committed by the ruling SAD-BJP combine,quot; he said.