PTI, AHMEDABAD: The Election Commission (EC) has issued a notice to the archbishop of Gandhinagar for asking Christians to pray to save the country from “nationalist forces” in the run-up to the Gujarat Assembly polls.
Issuing a letter addressed to the Christians, the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Gandhinagar, Thomas Macwan, had last week urged the members of the community to save the country from “nationalist forces” as its “democratic fabric” was at stake, amidst a growing “sense of insecurity” among the minorities.
In Gujarat’s political circles, the appeal was seen as an indirect call to vote against the ruling BJP. Gandhinagar Collector and District Election Officer Satish Patel told PTI that the EC issued the notice after taking cognizance of media reports and asked the archbishop to clarify his intention behind issuing such a letter. “We have issued a notice to the archbishop, seeking clarity over his intention behind the letter, which was widely publicised in the media. We have given him a few days’ time to respond. We will decide on the future course of action on thebasis of his reply,” Patel said today.
“We understand that the letter was an attempt to misguide the voters and confuse the minority community voters at a time when the model code of conduct is in force,” Patel said.
