Not Nehru but Indira should bother Narendra Modi.

44 years ago, on June 12, 1975 Justice Jagmohal Sinha found the then Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractices in the State of Uttar Pradesh v. Raj Narain case (1975
AIR 865, 1975 SCR (3) 333). Indira Gandhi was charged of using government machinery and
resources to gain an unfair advantage in contesting the election which included using
government employees as election agents and of organising campaign activities while on the
payroll of the government. The court declared the election verdict in the Rae Bareilly
constituency “null and void”.

Although the Supreme Court formally overturned the conviction on November 7, 1975 the case
still remains a significant example of what Democratic India should look like. A beggar or the
Prime Minister both below the law of the land. However, in 2019 we find Narendra Modi using
government machinery in the political campaigns and that too on records but still no action has
been taken against him. The question is if Prime Minister Indira Gandhi could be prosecuted on
similar charges then why not Prime Minister Narendra Modi?

Had there been any official amendment in the Constitution or any ordinance passed in the
parliament declaring Narendra Modi as a monarch above the law then it would have been a
different case but as of a democratic country, the Constitution guarantees “equality” and no one
is above the law.

On April 13, 2019 Narendra Modi was seen traveling to Chitradurga, Karnataka for BJP
campaign in an Indian Air Force helicopter.

The Model Code of Conduct (MCC) clearly mentions the following guidelines for the party in
power (both centre and state)

1. The Ministers shall not combine their official visit with electioneering work and shall not
also make use of official machinery or personnel during the electioneering work.
 2. Government transport including official air-crafts, vehicles, machinery and personnel
shall not be used for furtherance of the interest of the party in power.

Perhaps Narendra Modi fails to understand that the IAF helicopter comes under the category of
“government aircraft” which he has been using it for BJP campaigns. Thus violating the MCC
and using government resources for benefiting his party in the elections. It is not the first time
when Modi has been found using the government aircrafts for personal use. In BJP's Meerut
rally too he reached the venue on an IAF helicopter. According to an RTI report, as of July 26,
2017 the IAF had flown Modi 128 times for personal trips whose expenses had been paid by the
PMO. In whichever state ECI declared elections Modi finds some work and reached there citing
official work. He has a record of mixing official work and electioneering. In fact, according to the
ThePrint.in, in the last 51 campaigns he visited 90% of areas with some official work. In another
RTI report, the PMO mentioned that as of October 2016, PM Modi hadn't taken any day off
which in short means, whatever political campaign he had been a part off was official work of
the Prime Minister!

The Election Commission of India was informed about the malpractice neither we received any
reply nor is there any visible sign of action by the ECU against Narendra Modi.
On the other hand, Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party don't seem to be bothered
about the MCC. From Vivek Oberoi starer Narendra Modi's biopic film to NaMo TV and from
hate speeches of senior BJP leaders to the use of government vehicles for election campaigns,
it seems as if the BJP has declared itself above the law of land with Narendra Modi as the de
facto monarch. Is this the same democratic India we once had or what we want to live in?- a
question that should haunt every patriotic Indian citizen.