Rajeev Chandrasekhar challenges Tharoor for debate on development of Thiruvananthapuram

New Delhi [India], April 8 (ANI): BJP candidate for Thiruvananthapuram Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Monday challenged his Congress counterpart, Shashi Tharoor for a debate on the development of Thiruvananthapuram.
Chandrasekhar accused Tharoor of spreading misinformation during a recent interview with the Kerala-based news organization where he falsely accused Chandrasekhar of offering money to religious leaders and key voters in the constituency.
In his post on X Rajeev said, "We have been debating in multiple forums during the last two weeks, and people have seen you struggle for answers to my questions on these occasions. Forced into a defensive mode, you chose to disseminate falsehoods that not only defamed me but also besmirched numerous social and religious organizations within my constituency. Therefore, to start with, you need to answer the following questions I have posed to you."
"Who are the leaders of these socio-religious organizations who purportedly took money from me? Why did you choose to tarnish the reputation of those honourable people? In your 15-year political career, did you ever approach these leaders with similar proposals, or did you receive such undue requests from them? Are you willing to put a stop to this politics of misinformation and outright lies?" he added.
The BJP candidate from Thiruvananthapuram asserted that he demanded an immediate retraction of these baseless accusations.
"I demand an immediate retraction of these baseless accusations and a sincere apology directed towards me and to these esteemed individuals After that, let's engage in a constructive debate for the comprehensive development of Thiruvananthapuram," Rajeev said.
Notably, a letter has been sent to the Election Commission of India, the Chief Electoral Officer of Kerala, and Adeela Abdullah, the Additional Chief Electoral Officer & Additional Secretary Nodal Officer of Model Code of Conduct, Kerala, stating that Tharoor violated the Model Code of Conduct by spreading falsehoods and misinformation about Rajeev Chandrasekhar.
The letter sent on Monday was written by advocate VV Rajesh, the NDA convener for Trivandrum Parliamentary constituency.
It highlighted Tharoor's statement made on April 6, 2024, through the Malayalam news channel where he said that Rajeev Chandrasekhar offered money to key voters in the constituency, including religious and community leaders such as parish priests, without disclosing their names publicly. The letter called for "strict action" against Tharoor and anyone acting on his behalf for violating the Model Code of Conduct, urging urgent measures to prevent the circulation of the video containing Tharoor's allegations to ensure free and fair elections in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, and India.
Rajesh said that Tharoor's statements were false, frivolous, and defamatory, made with malicious intent to defame Rajeev Chandrasekhar and undermine the fairness of the elections in Thiruvananthapuram.
He referenced Rule I(2) of the MCC formulated by the EC which states, "Criticism of other political parties when made, shall be confined to their policies and programme, past record and work. Parties and Candidates shall refrain from criticism of all aspects of private life, not connected with the public activities of the leaders or workers of other parties. Criticism of other parties or their workers based on unverified allegations or distortion shall be avoided."
He also went to say that, "Tharoor is also violating sub-section 3 of section 123 of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 by appealing to the religious identity of the voters and his actions constitute a corrupt practice under the RP Act as held by the decision of the 7-judge bench of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India Abhiram Singh v. CD Commachen (Civil Appeal No.37/1992)."
This isn't the first instance of the Congress and its candidate Tharoor facing accusations of spreading falsehoods and misinformation.
Just last week, in a significant blow to the Congress party, Rajeev Chandrasekhar filed a criminal complaint against J. Moses Joseph DCruz, a member of the Thiruvananthapuram District Congress Committee and the National Executive Committee of the All India Fishermen's Congress.
The complaint alleged that DCruz engaged in disseminating misinformation and criminal conspiracies by morphing an old photograph of Rajeev Chandrasekhar to falsely imply a business relationship with CPI(M)'s EP Jayarajan and his wife PK Indira. (ANI)