New Delhi:

The Election Commission of India issued a notice to Delhi minister Atish for alleged violation of poll rules, days after she alleged that the BJP threatened her with arrest if she did not change her stance. The poll body said the BJP had lodged a complaint over her remarks and asked the AAP leader to submit a response by 5 pm on Saturday.

The European Commission said that because she is a minister, voters tend to believe what she says in public and if there is a dispute, she must be able to back up her remarks with facts. “You are hereby requested to respond accordingly to this matter no later than 17:00 on April 6, 2024,” the EC said.

Atish, one of the top leaders tasked with managing AAP affairs after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested last month, claimed earlier this week that the BJP had offered her a change of stance to save her political career.

Read | Delhi BJP sues AAP’s Atishi after she claims she proposed switch

“The BJP approached me through a very close person. They asked me to join the BJP and said it would save my political career. They threatened that if I don’t convert, the Enforcement Directorate will arrest me within a certain period of time “One month,” she claimed on Tuesday.

The claim triggered a defamation notice from the BJP camp and a demand for a public apology.

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said she had provided no evidence as to who had contacted her, how and when. “AAP is going through a crisis in Delhi and that is why they are leveling such baseless accusations out of frustration. But we will not let her get away with it,” he said.

Read | Atishi claims that the BJP has made a switch proposal, saying these AAP leaders will be arrested soon

They also filed a complaint with the Election Commission, saying Atish’s comments were misleading and unsubstantiated.

The model code of conduct was implemented across the country due to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, which last for three months and are hailed as the largest democratic festival in the world.