Cricketer Rinku Singh, who the Election Commission of India roped in for a voter awareness campaign, will no longer be seen in posters and banners that were put up featuring him under the poll body's Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) campaign. Rinku Singh has been removed from ECI's flagship voter awareness SVEEP campaigns.
This action by the the poll body follows the cricketer's engagement to Samajwadi Party MP Priya Saroj on 8 June this year. The couple will reportedly tie the knot in February next year.
The commission has instructed the district administration to immediately remove all posters, banners, and hoardings of Rinku Singh related to the SVEEP campaign wherever they are displayed. The commission has cited the reason that there could be political implications due to the cricketer's engagement to an SP MP.
After their engagement, the cricketer was seen with MP fiancé at various stadiums during several domestic matches. Although the government had earlier included the cricketer in the SVEEP campaign on the Election Commission's instructions, when discussions about his engagement to the MP intensified, the commission decided to remove him.
Following instructions received from the Election Commission, UP District Election Officer and Additional District Magistrate Finance and Revenue Lalita Prasad has directed all Sub-District Magistrates, election-related officers, SVEEP teams to ensure the removal of voter awareness-related posters and videos from all other platforms, including websites.
The ADM Finance and Revenue stated that after receiving letters from the commission and government, promotional materials related to cricketer Rinku Singh from the SVEEP campaign—including posters, banners, and hoardings—will be removed from all locations, and instructions have been given to subordinates for this purpose.
