“A ban on such polls cannot be considered based on who is demanding the ban. Clearly, (opinion) polls are also a part of free speech. Restricting them is constitutionally neither permissible nor desirable,” Jaitley said.
Several opinion polls conducted recently show BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi ahead of Rahul Gandhi, widely seen as the PM probable for Congress. Opinion polls on the ensuing Assembly elections show BJP as the clear winner in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
“If the polls can be legitimately banned in this country, the next step would be to ban political commentators from giving assessments favourable to some and adverse to some others.
A potential loser in an election cannot seek to alter the rules of free speech,” Jaitley said.
With Congress taking the case to the Election Commission, BJP said the poll panel is best advised to “keep away from this controversy and allow the market place of democracy to accept or reject the findings of opinion polls”.
