This is the second time Navjot Sidhu has been hauled up by the Election Commission.
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu has received a notice from the Election Commission for allegedly launching a personal attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally in Ahmedabad on April 17. He has been given time till 6 pm today to respond.
According to the election body, the notice was issued on the basis of a complaint lodged by a BJP Election Commission Committee member as well as a "factual report" submitted by the Ahmedabad poll authorities along with video clips and transcripts of relevant portions of the speech.
In one of his remarks, Mr Sidhu allegedly referred to PM Modi as "feku" -- or fibber -- in relation to "unfulfilled" promises made in his 2014 campaign. In another, he reportedly claimed that the next movie on the Prime Minister would be called "Liar No. 1".
According to the notice, the Punjab Minister also allegedly drew a comparison between PM Modi and Mahatma Gandhi at the rally. "This was once believed to be the land of Mahatma Gandhi. What did he arm himself with? Only the truth! He would wave his stick just once, and the country followed in his footsteps. It's very unfortunate that this same land will now be known as that of a liar PM," the Election Commission quoted him as saying.
The notice stated that these remarks were in violation of the Model Code of Conduct, which clearly rules that criticism of rival parties or politicians should remain confined to their "policies, programmes, past record and work" and not refer to aspects of their private life or "unverified allegations".
This is the second time Mr Sidhu has fallen afoul of Election Commission regulations over the last 20 days. On April 20, he had received a show-cause notice for urging Muslim voters in Bihar's Katihar to vote en bloc to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabha Elections. He was subsequently barred from campaigning for 72 hours.