EC files FIR against BJP candidate from Gauripur for 'beef remark'

DHUBRI: The Election Commission of India EC has lodged an FIR at the Gauripur Police Station against BJP candidate Banendra Kumar Mushahary for his recent comments, where he claimed that beef is the "national dish" of India.

The development came after the BJP candidate from Gauripur during an election campaign in a minority-dominated area said that 'beef' is the 'National Dish' of India. He further claimed it to be an international dish that cannot be banned in Assam or anywhere in the country. Mushahary further added, "The beef that we eat how can it be banned?

The remark from the BJP candidate contradicts the ideologies of the party that has always advocated for a beef ban across the country. The minister's comment has also enraged various organisations, among them was Purbanchal Hindu Oikya Mancha, who on Tuesday, registered an FIR at the Dispur Police Station, and demanded that immediate actions should be initiated against Mushahary for violating the model code of conduct in poll-bound Assam.

The Mancha further questioned in the FIR that how a candidate can give such comments to attract voters of a particular community while hurting the sentiments of another community, while the MCC is in force.

The Purbanchal Hindu Aikya Mancha also accused the BJP candidate of spreading hatred and inciting enmity between two religious communities in Assam.

Reports also suggest that Mushahary has made this statement in order to appease the minority population in the Constituency. However, it did not go down well with Local Hindu bodies who also demanded an apology from the Minister.

BJP workers in Dhubri district have also raised serious questions on Mushahary's statement at the election meeting in Gauripur and demanded that the BJP candidate should immediately tender his apology.

It needs to be mentioned here that Mushahary joined the BJP last year in December, earlier he belonged to the Bodo Peoples Front (BPF) and was elected as an MLA for the third time in 2011.

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