India's main opposition BJP is holding a protest in the city
Varanasi after its leader Narendra Modi was denied authorisation to hold a
rally there.
The Election Commission on Wednesday denied permission for
the rally citing security concerns. Mr Modi is contesting the Varanasi seat in the general
election.
India's election, with 814 million eligible voters, is the
world's biggest exercise in democracy and the governing Congress party is
battling the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for power. Mr Modi is ahead in all
the opinion polls.
In the morning tweets on Thursday, Mr Modi accused the
election authorities of bias. "It is unfortunate that EC [Election Commission] is not
concerned about the institution's neutrality and that is why our Karyakartas
[workers] have to embark on a Satyagraha [protest]," Mr Modi tweeted.
Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley wrote in his blog: "I
cannot conceal my disappointment with the Election Commission. Men in
constitutional offices need to be bolder. Timid men can dwarf high
offices."
The Election Commission has rejected the BJP's accusation,
saying it does not accept the "insinuation" of inaction or bias on
the issue. It said Mr Modi had been given authorisation for two other
events in Varanasi but security issues raised by the state government could not
be overlooked.
Varanasi is a key election battleground where Mr Modi is
being challenged by Arvind Kejriwal, the head of India's new anti-corruption
Aam Aadmi [Common Man] Party. The Congress party candidate there is local
politician Ajay Rai.
Voting is due in Varanasi on 12 May - the ninth and final
phase of the marathon election which began on 7 April. Counting of the votes is
due on 16 May.
Mr Modi is standing for election in two seats - in the Hindu
holy city of Varanasi as well as Vadodara in Gujarat. If he wins both seats, he
will have to relinquish one.
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