EC puts it down: sari show that killed 25 for BJP, by BJP, of BJP

‘‘The event was sponsored, managed and organised by BJP workers with the view to inducing an atmosphere of advantage and to raise the electoral prospects of the BJP,’’ said chief electoral officer Vijay Sharma, as he read out from the FIR that the commission filed before the Mahanagar police station. ‘‘The attempt was an exercise to influence the free and fair election by illegal means.’’

The stark assessment punctured the different interpretations that the BJP has being putting on the incident that saw the women and children—from the poorest quarters in the city—die as they jostled for the saris, each of which was worth only Rs 40.

At first, the BJP had claimed it was a mere exercise in charity.

Then it had said it had nothing to do with organising the show. Finally, it had sought to deflect the blame from Tandon and the Prime Minister.

As if to emphasise the point, Tandon had strode alongside the Prime Minister when he went to file his nomination.

Among other evidence. the commission had relied on advertisements that appeared in local newspapers on April 12 to establish that BJP was behind the show.

Even as the Election Commission served a show-cause notice to the BJP and Tandon is trying to keep a low profile, the party’s leaders are sticking to their story.

‘‘The BJP has nothing to do with the sari distribution show as it was organised by the Nagrik Sewa Samiti which has no link with the party,’’ claimed former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh while giving a clean chit to Tandon.

The Congress has decided to observe a black day all over the state on Monday.

It wants the Prime Minister’s nomination scrapped and murder charges lodged against Tandon.

‘‘The BJP used the function to influence the voters in favour of the Prime Minister by giving them saris and promising other incentives,’’ said Sanjay Singh, who head the Congress campaign committee in Uttar Pradesh, virtually parroting the electoral officer’s words.

The fact that NDA leaders have not expressed sympathy or remorse will work against them, he added.

BSP supremo Mayawati also jumped into the fray by demanding that the Prime Minister oust Tandon—she had once called him Lalchi Tandon—not just from his campaign committee but also from the BJP.

In an indication that the incident was becoming a test case of sorts for various parties, even Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav was forced to do an about-face.

Having virtually defended the BJP after the stampede, he sang a different tune today: ‘‘There is a wide gap between on what the BJP leaders say and what they actually do.’’