New Delhi:

Ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly election, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi found himself under scrutiny as Election Commission officials inspected his bags upon his arrival at Amravati district today. This inspection, which took place just a day after a similar controversy over his helicopter being grounded in Jharkhand, has prompted Congress to accuse the poll body of unfairness.

Rahul Gandhi arrived in Dhamangaon Railway, one of the eight constituencies in Amravati district, to address a public rally ahead of the November 20 Assembly elections. Shortly after his helicopter landed, election officials approached the Congress leader’s team and searched his luggage as part of the Election Commission’s enforcement of the model code of conduct.

Watch: Election Commission officials inspected the helicopter of Leader of Opposition (LoP) and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in Amravati, Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/cl2yx7dPp7

— IANS (@ians_india) November 16, 2024

A video circulating on social media captured the moment. Mr Gandhi stood nearby as officials checked his bags. After a few moments, he walked away to engage with his party colleagues.

Yashomati Thakur, a Congress MLA and former state minister, expressed outrage over the inspection and asked if the bags of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, or Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde were checked by poll officials. 

The incident comes on the heels of a similar controversy in Yavatmal, where Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray faced a bag inspection during his campaign. Mr Thackeray accused poll officials of selective enforcement. However, videos later emerged showing similar inspections for BJP leaders, including Amit Shah, Devendra Fadnavis, and Ajit Pawar.

The controversy, coupled with Friday’s grounding of Mr Gandhi’s helicopter in Jharkhand’s Godda, allegedly due to “protocol restrictions.” Congress leaders accused the BJP government of orchestrating the delay to hinder Mr Gandhi’s schedule, which included a rally marking the birth anniversary of tribal icon Birsa Munda.

According to Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh, Mr Gandhi’s flight, scheduled for 1:15 pm, was delayed by nearly two hours due to the declaration of a no-fly zone for other political leaders. Mr Ramesh called the move a blatant violation of electoral fairness, accusing the BJP of using “petty tactics”.
 

Godda:

Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, faced an unexpected delay today as his helicopter remained grounded in Jharkhand’s Godda awaiting clearance from Air Traffic Control (ATC). 

The chopper was allowed to take off after a delay of 45 minutes amid high-stakes campaigning for the final phase of the state’s assembly elections.

The Congress claimed the hold-up was a calculated move to disrupt Mr Gandhi’s campaign schedule. Party leaders pointed fingers at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally in Chakai, about 150 kilometres from Godda, suggesting that the ATC’s decision prioritised the PM’s event over Mr Gandhi’s movements.

“Just because the PM is in Deogarh, Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to cross that area…There is the protocol we understand but Congress ruled the country for 70 years and such an incident never happened with any opposition leader. This is not acceptable,” said Deepika Pandey Singh, MLA and Congress candidate from Mahagama Constituency.

Around 80 km away at the Deoghar airport, Prime Minister Modi’s aircraft experienced a technical snag due to which the aircraft had to remain at the airport causing a delay in his return to Delhi. PM Modi is scheduled to be in the national capital this evening where he will inaugurate an event at the SAI Indira Gandhi Sports Complex. 

The second phase of Jharkhand’s assembly elections will take place on November 20. The first phase of voting concluded on November 14 for 43 of the state’s 81 seats. The election results will be counted on November 23.