Conduct of Candidate While Campaigning

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There is a certain conduct that candidates must follow while campaigning. All political parties and candidates should avoid activities that affect the voters and other candidates such as¹:

Actions against Voters

Bribes: Bribing voters to vote for or not vote for a candidate or party. For example: Giving a voter a television to vote for a candidate.
Threats: Threatening voters that there will be consequences for not voting for a certain party/candidate.
Inducing Voters: Trying to make anyone believe that they will be subject to any godly punishment if they do not follow the instructions of the candidate.
Impersonation of Voters: Impersonation of voters to cast illegal votes.

Actions against Candidates

Threats to Other Candidates: Threatening any other candidate or voter with injury or any kind of social ostracism, ex-communication or expulsion from any caste or community.
Personal Attacks: While criticising other candidates and political parties, candidates must restrict their comments to policies, programmes, past records and works of other parties and candidates. They should not criticise or comment on the private lives of other candidates, political parties or their workers. Criticism based on unverified reports should also be avoided at all costs.

Manual for Model Code of Conduct, Election Commission, available at https://eci.gov.in/files/file/9375-manual-on-model-code-of-conduct [↩]

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