The Congress party in Assam did exactly what it had complained against, to the Election Commission earlier. The party on March 30 released Skybus advertisements in multiple newspapers in the state, simply copying the Bharatiya Janata Party’s strategy which was slammed by a wide section of people on March 28.
The party on March 30 released Skybus advertisements with the ‘headline’: “Congress wave across Assam”. The advertisement was published in at least 15 newspapers in the state.
Earlier, the BJP was slammed for publishing advertisements “that looked like newspaper headlines” a day after the first phase of polling in Assam on March 28.
The Congress party approached the Election Commission complaining about the deceptive advertisements calling them as an attempt by the BJP to confuse and influence the voters in the second and third phase of polling in Assam.
The Assam Congress submitted a memorandum to Assam Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Nitin Khade against the BJP and the six newspapers for publishing the ‘misleading’ advertisement.
The memorandum said that the advertisement of the BJP on the party’s “performance in the first phase of election” was aimed at “influencing and deceiving the public/voters for the remaining two phases of election”.
But, a similar strategy by the Congress, seen as a tit-for-tat attempt, may have actually conceded the high moral ground the party had taken after the BJP’s campaign.
In the melee, the publishers of the newspapers are having the last laugh!
