The Election Commission has set up a 14-member panel to study how social media and other digital platforms are used ahead of polls and make suggestions on how to adapt the Model Code of Conduct to these changes.
The panel has three months to suggest changes to Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, which currently prohibits all campaigning 48 hours before voting.
The move comes a month after the Election Commission first issued and then withdrew a notice it sent to Congress President Rahul Gandhi for violating the Model Code of Conduct by giving a television interview ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections.
While withdrawing the notice, the commission told the Congress in a letter that it was “of the considered view that due to multifold expansion of digital and electronic media, the extent of the Model Code of Conduct, Section 126 of Representation of People Act, 1951, and other related provisions require revisiting...”
It said it would form a panel to “suggest changes in the prevailing context of communication technologies”.
In an order dated January 8, the Election Commission said Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha will head the committee. It will consist of eight EC officers, one member each from the ministries of information and broadcasting, law, and information and technology, as well as one senior representative each from the National Broadcasters Association and the Press Council of India.
The panel will not only suggest how the election law could be modified, but also how to regulate several media platforms in the 48-hour period before voting, especially for multi-phase elections.
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