Just Gave My Opinion, Says BJP's Kapil Mishra after EC Asks Twitter to Take Down His India Vs Pak Tweet

New Delhi: The Election Commission has asked Twitter to remove a controversial tweet by BJP's Kapil Mishra, a candidate for the upcoming Delhi assembly polls, in which he likened the election in the city to a India versus Pakistan contest.

The Election Commission's action came after the office of the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer wrote to the EC to remove the tweet posted by Mishra on Thursday, EC officials said.

The Delhi CEO Office has also issued a showcause notice to Mishra, who has been fielded by the BJP from the Model Town constituency, they said.

"We took cognisance of the tweet, and wrote to EC last night seeking its removal. The EC then asked Twitter to remove his tweet. The tweet is a violation of the Model Code of Conduct and the the Representation of the People Act, so we have taken action. We have also issued a showcause notice to Kapil Mishra," Delhi CEO Ranbir Singh said.

Responding to the EC notice, Mishra said, "I have only given my general opinion as many people are facing lot of problem due to the closure of road. Since Shaheen Bagh does not fall in my constituency (Model Town) from where I am contesting, therefore it should not be believe in the context of Delhi election or violate the model code of conduct."

In the tweet on Thursday, Mishra, a former minister in the Arvind Kejriwal cabinet, said the February 8 election will be a contest between India and Pakistan in Delhi.

In its criticism of opposition parties over their protest against the citizenship law, the BJP has been accusing them of speaking "Pakistan's language".

Authorities at the Delhi CEO Office had earlier said that social media posts are being constantly monitored to check for any provocative or inflammatory posts or tweets being made by users, related to the polls.

The election will be a triangular fight involving the Aam Aadmi Party, Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress. Polling will be held on February 8 and the results declared on February 11.

In a series of tweets in Hindi on Thursday, Mishra had also lashed out at anti-CAA protesters in Shaheen Bagh and other places in the city.

"India vs Pakistan 8th February Delhi. There will a contest on Delhi Roads between India and Pakistan on February 8."

"Pakistan has already entered Shaheen Bagh and small pockets of Pakistan are being created in Delhi," he had tweeted.

In another post, Mishra claimed that the BJP will win the February 8 polls and Kejriwal will resign from his post when votes are counted.

The former AAP leader was removed as minister by Kejriwal in 2017. Last year, he was also disqualified as AAP MLA under the anti-defection law.

Mishra faces AAP MLA Akhileshpati Tripathi in the elections. Nominations of nearly 700 candidates for the Delhi elections were found to be valid by poll authorities after scrutiny, officials said on Thursday.

According to the final electoral roll, over 1.46 crore people are eligible to exercise their franchise.