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RAS question

The Model Code of Conduct (MCC) comes into force:

Correct answer: (A) From the date the election schedule is announced by the ECI.

The Model Code of Conduct comes into force immediately from the date and time the Election Commission of India announces the election schedule.

  1. (A)

    From the date the election schedule is announced by the ECI

  2. (B)

    On the date of polling

  3. (C)

    From the date of filing nominations

  4. (D)

    30 days before the date of polling

Explanation

The trigger for the Model Code of Conduct is the Election Commission's announcement of the election schedule, not any later campaign milestone. The Election Commission of India's 2024 compendium states that the MCC operates from the time and day the Commission issues the schedule, and an ECI communication on the 2019 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections says that, with the announcement, the provisions for the guidance of political parties and candidates came into force with immediate effect. MCC applies from announcement and continues until the election process is completed or results are declared. It is a code of guidelines for parties and candidates, not a statutory provision by itself.

Why the other options are wrong

  • (B) Polling day is too late because the MCC begins as soon as the election schedule is announced, before voters actually cast their votes.
  • (C) Filing nominations is not the trigger because the code starts earlier, with the Election Commission's announcement of the schedule.
  • (D) There is no fixed 30-day countdown rule; the operative point is the announcement of the election schedule by the Election Commission.

Concept

This tests the Election Commission and electoral-governance portion of Indian Constitution & Governance, especially the precise trigger and duration of the MCC. It recurs in RAS-style questions because the trap is usually a plausible election-stage milestone rather than the legally relevant ECI announcement.

Source

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