Use of Religion as a Basis for Campaigning

Last updated on May 28, 2024

A party or candidate cannot campaign in any manner which would result in creating tension or hatred between different castes and religious communities.

The MCC does not allow anyone or any organization to use religion to further the prospects of a candidate or a political party during an election, irrespective of their relationship to the political party/individual candidate. For example, political parties, candidates, religious/cultural organizations, associations or individuals cannot campaign in favour of or against certain political parties or candidate by holding any meetings, conclaves, processions, religious congregations, etc.

Some of the actions that are prohibited are1:

  • No one can use religion and play on religious sentiments of voters.
  • No one can ask for votes by influencing someone to believe that there is a religious punishment by god or a divine power which will occur to them, if they don’t vote for a particular candidate.2
  • No one should use religion to create disharmony among different groups of people.3
  • No one should make any malicious statements which would attack the personal life of any politician.4
  • Temples, mosques, churches and other places of worship cannot be used for any election campaigning.

Some examples of violations of MCC by using religion for campaigning are:

  • If pictures of politicians are put up on billboards outside the temple entrance.
  • If money is given by a political party to beggars outside a temple to get votes.
  1. Model Code of Conduct, Election Commission of India, available at eci.gov.in. []
  2. Section 123(3), Representation of the People Act, 1951. []
  3. Section 153A, Indian Penal Code (IPC); Section 125, Representation of the People Act, 1951. []
  4. Section 123(4), Representation of the People Act, 1951. []

How useful was this post?

Click on a star to rate it!

Average rating 5 / 5. Vote count: 1

No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.

Please share your feedback about this post!

Sharing feedback will help us improve our content. Tell us how!

If you want to keep your feedback confidential, please mention it in your feedback. If you have a question, please ask us in the comments or Ask Nyaaya sections.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Have a question you want to ask our legal experts?

Related Resources

Print Media and MCC

All print media including newspapers have to follow the rules under the MCC.

Unfair Election Practices by Candidates

There are many practices during an election campaign that candidates are not supposed to do, which count as unfair election practices by the candidates.

Ban on Use of Official Vehicles during Campaigning

The use of any official vehicles for campaigning or election-related travel from the date of announcement of elections till the completion of elections is not allowed.

Use of Defence Forces for Campaigning

Political parties or candidates cannot use defence forces for campaigning purposes. They cannot use the photographs of any defence forces or army staff during their campaign.

What is the Model Code of Conduct (MCC)?

The MCC are rules and regulations for the actions of the political parties, candidates, people supporting them, civil servants during election time and anybody else who is associated with elections.

When Does MCC Apply?

For the Lok Sabha elections, MCC is in force from when the election schedule is announced up to the announcement of the results.