An FIR has been registered at Ranchi against BJP’s Jharkhand unit for allegedly posting false and misleading videos on the ‘BJP 4 Jharkhand’ social media handle to target opposition INDIA bloc leaders, which is a violation of model code of conduct (MCC) guidelines enforced due to assembly elections in the tribal State.

The cybercrime police station Ranchi, which registered the FIR on Sunday, wrote to a social media platform to remove the objectionable posts under Section 69(A) of the IT Act, sources in Ranchi said.

The FIR was registered on a complaint received from the Election Commission from Congress leader Jairam Ramesh.

The Congress leader, in his complaint with the Election Commission, had described it as “a most disgusting ad relating to Jharkhand put out by the BJP officially”.

“It not only brazenly and blatantly violates the ECI’s Model Code of Conduct, it is also an act of serious criminality. We hope the ECI will act immediately and pursue this matter to its logical conclusion,” Jairam Ramesh posted on X on Sunday.

The advertisement features three characters resembling Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav and accuses them of being “anti-tribal” and takes a dig at them for seeking votes.

Jharkhand will go to polls in two phases, on November 13 and November 20.

Refrain Rahul Gandhi

Meanwhile, the BJP on Monday appealed to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to “reprimand, censure and restrain” Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly lying during campaigning for Maharashtra assembly elections.

Referring to meetings Congress leader addressed earlier, the BJP said Rahul Gandhi had “falsely accused other States of stealing and snatching alleged opportunities from the State of Maharashtra”.

“We told them Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi spoke lies in Maharashtra... he said BJP wants to crush the Constitution,” Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said after the saffron party delegation met top ECI officials.

The BJP also referred to what it said Gandhi’s “totally unverified claims... that Apple’s iPhones and Boeing’s airplanes are being manufactured in other states at the expense of Maharashtra”.

“... in fact, the State of Maharashtra has topped in FDI (foreign direct investment) across India by receiving a total of ₹ 70,795 crore from April to June 2024-25,” the BJP delegation told the EC.

The BJP also charged that “Rahul Gandhi, with his statements, is inciting youth of Maharashtra, which is immensely dangerous.”