New Delhi: The Election Commission has served a show-cause notice on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his “panauti (harbinger of bad luck)” remark, which linked India’s loss in the Cricket World Cup final to the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Ahmedabad stadium.The poll body’s notice also drew attention to other alleged poll code violations by the Congress leader. “It is alleged that comparing a prime minister to a jaibkatra (pickpocket) and using the word panauti is unbecoming of a very senior leader of a national political party. Further, the allegation of grant of waivers of Rs 14,00,000 crore for the past nine years, is asserted by the BJP, as not borne out on facts,” the poll body said in a statement, according to Hindustan Times.Gandhi has been ordered to appear before the EC on Saturday, November 25, to file his response. The EC’s notice to Gandhi is in response to a complaint lodged by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing Gandhi of resorting to “character assassination” of Modi.During an election rally in Rajasthan’s Barmer, Gandhi had said, “The pickpocket never comes alone, there are three people. One comes from the front, one from the back and one from the distance… Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s job is to divert your attention. He comes on TV from the front and distracts the public by raising topics of Hindu-Muslim, demonetisation, and GST. Meanwhile, Adani comes from behind and takes the money.”The BJP took exception to Gandhi’s remarks against PM Modi. “Calling any person for that instance a Jaibkatra not only amounts to vicious abuse and personal attack but also a character assassination of that person against whom such remark has been made with a clear intent to harm his reputation and mislead the public,” the BJP had said in its complaint filed before the EC.