Following the complaint filed with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) against the Congress party and its leader Rahul Gandhi, the child rights body has asked the Election Commission of India to take action for misusing children as political tools.

The Congress party kicked off the Bharat Jodo Yatra, a fancy road trip from Kanyakumari to Kashmir in an attempt to give a new lease of life to the party in the run-up to the various state Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

As part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Bharat Jodo Bacche Jodo campaign is organized by ‘Jawahar Bal Manch’ which as per its official Twitter handle, is a department of the Indian National Congress.

Rahul Gandhi as part of his political campaign has been visiting schools and interacting with minor children making them participate in political campaigns and inculcating political ideology in them.

The party through its social media handles has been publishing several videos of Rahul Gandhi’s yatra and his interactions. There are several images and videos that have been circulating on social media that show children being targeted and made to participate in the campaign with a political agenda under the slogan ‘Bharat Jodo Bacche Jodo’.

The minor children participating in the campaign were seen holding Indian National Congress party flags and shouting political slogans.

A complaint was filed by NGO-watchdog Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), stating that a political party has set up an internal department to mobilize minor children in its activities which are contradictory to the provisions under section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

The complaint also stated that the Election Commission of India and quasi-judicial bodies, including the NCPCR, had made it clear that parading children during elections or political campaign is a clear violation of children's rights.

The NCPCR in its letter to the ECI stated “Since INC is registered as a political party, any separate wing established/organized by the party is a part of the party that is political in nature. Therefore, ‘Jawahar Bal Manch’ is a political wing of the INC….Membership of a party shall be open only for adult Indian citizens (i.e. above l8 years of age). In this regard, INC is also violating these guidelines by the Election Commission and its own rules submitted to the Election Commission.”

“In view of the allegations stated in the complaint, the Commission deems it appropriate to take cognizance u/s l3l (i) O of CPCR Act, 2005 since there is a prima-facie violation of child rights.”, the letter stated.

The NCPCR letter also stated that the use of children as props to fulfill the political agenda is child abuse which can have a severe long-term impact on their mental health and is against Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

“The commission thereby requests your good offices to look into the matter and have a thorough inquiry of the events and take necessary action against the political party and its members who have been mentioned in the complaint.”, the letter concluded.

References:

thecommunemag.com