EC orders FIR against Manipur BJP office bearers over ads in newspaper

The Election Commission has ordered registration of an FIR against office bearers of Manipur BJP for publishing an advertisement without the requisite approval from the certification panel. 

EC sources said in New Delhi yesterday that on the basis of a report by poll authorities in Manipur, the commission also directed the state chief electoral officer to get FIRs filed against eight newspapers for



publishing the election advertisement. The ads were published yesterday.

While there is no bar on the publication of election advertisements 48 hours before the polling, a rule introduced by the Commission during the Bihar assembly polls says that such advertisements should be cleared by a certification committee.It states that without approval no newspaper will publish such advertisements.