Editorial in The Hindu on Election Commision's order on Varun Gandhi's campaign speeches

The Hindu
March 24, 2009

Editorial

A stinging censure

The Election Commission’s order on Varun Gandhi is a damning indictment of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate for Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh. It strongly censures Mr. Gandhi for making two inflammatory and “offensive” campaign speeches on March 7 and 8; at the same time it totally rejects his weak and implausible explanation that the tapes of those rallies were doctored or morphed because of a conspiracy to politically malign him. The EC reached its conclusion after viewing — and several times at that — a video CD that was “more comprehensive” than the clips aired on some television channels. As the EC has suggested, Mr. Gandhi’s principal defence has been a “bald assertion” to the effect that the tapes were doctored. He has not denied the material facts — that he did hold these election meetings and that the video recordings were taken at these very rallies; moreover, he has not been specific about which portions of his speeches, if at all, were doctored. In fact, the explanation offered by Mr. Gandhi is directed solely at advancing his fanciful conspiracy theory. For instance, quite incredibly, he uses the gap of some 10 days between his speeches and the airing of the TV clips to substantiate his claim that they were manipulated.

As the Election Commission has admitted, it has no teeth to prevent Mr. Gandhi from contesting the elections. Its observations that he does not deserve to be a candidate and that the BJP should deny him nomination to contest must be seen in the context of the entire incident. First, for their sheer crudeness and insensitivity, Mr. Gandhi’s remarks easily surpass even the appalling standards set by dyed-in-the-wool communalists. Secondly, there was not even a speck of remorse for what he said; rather only a bland denial accompanied by a strident reassertion of his Hindu identity. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the BJP — on which the EC’s notice was also served — had told the Commission that it disapproved of Mr. Gandhi’s remarks shown on the TV clips and declared that it stood by the Model Code of Conduct. The Commission felt that, in keeping with this attitude, the least the BJP could do is to take the logical step of denying him the party nomination. It is unfortunate that rather than adopt a course of action that would signal it is against spreading hate and creating enmity on the grounds of religion, the BJP has chosen to reiterate his candidature while questioning the Commission’s right to proffer such advice. As a result, the entire controversy over the hate speeches has reflected badly not only on the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family but also on the party that hopes to exploit his legacy for political gain.