Delhi Election: EC bans Anurag Thakur from campaigning for 72 hours, Parvesh Verma barred for 96 hours

The Election Commission, on January 30, imposed a 72-hour ban on Minister of State (MoS) for Finance Anurag Thakur and a 96-hour ban on BJP leader Parvesh Verma's poll campaigning, days after their controversial remarks.

The move comes as the campaigning for the crucial Delhi Assembly elections enters its last leg. Voting for the 70-member assembly is scheduled for February 8, while counting of votes is expected on February 11.

While the EC had earlier ordered that the two be removed from the list of BJP's star campaigners list, they have also been issued show cause notices for their comments.

During an election rally on Monday, Thakur had egged on the crowd to raise an incendiary slogan -- "shoot the traitors" -- after he lashed out at anti-CAA protesters.

Verma, a Member of Parliament from West Delhi, had said what happened in Kashmir with Kashmiri Pandits could happen in Delhi, warning that lakhs of anti-CAA protesters in Shaheen Bagh could enter homes to kill and rape women.

Last week, the EC had barred BJP candidate Kapil Mishra from campaignng for 48 hours for his inflammatory tweets.

The poll body, on January 29, issued an advisory citing "several instances of undesirable public utterances" by political leaders during Delhi assembly election campaign, reminding political parties of various provisions of the model code, including the one which bars politicians from indulging in activities that can create mutual hatred.