Mumbai: The Congress party on Monday called for the Election Commission (EC) to take action against Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Rashmi Shukla, alleging that she violated the Model Code of Conduct by meeting Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis during the Assembly elections. The meeting allegedly took place on November 23, while the Model Code of Conduct was still in effect, during the counting of votes.
The Model Code of Conduct is a set of guidelines issued by the EC to ensure fairness during elections, outlining rules for political parties, candidates, and government officials regarding speeches, meetings, processions, and other election-related activities.
Atul Londhe, the Congress chief spokesperson, claimed that Shukla met Fadnavis at his official residence while the Model Code of Conduct was still in force. Fadnavis, who is also the state home minister, reportedly held the meeting during a critical period when the vote count was underway. Londhe stated that this act was a clear violation of the election guidelines and called on the EC to take swift action against Shukla.
This comes after the Election Commission had ordered Shukla’s transfer as the Maharashtra Director General of Police on November 4, following accusations from Congress that she was biased against the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), a coalition of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Congress. Londhe emphasized that Shukla’s meeting with Fadnavis occurred even after the Assembly elections concluded, while the Model Code of Conduct remained in effect.
The Congress spokesperson also referenced a similar incident in Telangana, where the Director General of Police, Anjani Kumar, faced action after meeting with a chief minister-designate during elections. Londhe questioned why the EC acted swiftly in non-BJP-ruled states but seemed unresponsive in BJP-ruled states, raising concerns about the impartiality of the poll body.
In addition to the alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct, Congress has previously accused Shukla of phone-tapping Opposition leaders during her tenure as Pune Police Commissioner and Director of the State Intelligence Department. As part of the controversy, Congress had demanded Shukla’s removal as the state DGP during the election period. Shukla was subsequently transferred, and Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar was assigned an additional charge as DGP.
In February 2022, when the MVA government was in power, cases were filed against Shukla for allegedly tapping the phones of Congress leaders, including Maharashtra Congress Chief Nana Patole and Uddhav Thackeray's MP Sanjay Raut. However, the Bombay High Court quashed the cases in 2023.
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government reinstated Rashmi Shukla as the Director General of Police on Monday. The state home department issued an order stating that with the completion of the electoral process and the announcement of election results, the Model Code of Conduct had been lifted, thereby ending Shukla’s forced leave. Shukla has now been instructed to resume her duties as DGP.