The Election Commission on Monday issued a notice to Union Agriculture Minister and Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar [Images] for alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct for the October 13 assembly elections in Maharshtra.

In the letter, the EC has said that it had received a compliant that the minister had violated the Model Code of Conduct by publishing an advertisement in a Marathi daily with a slogan in Marathi saying "This Kharif season rains didn't help you, but we will: To farmer friends from Union agriculture ministry".

The EC noted that such an adviretisement published at the time of the assembly elections was a 'prima facie motivated to influence the voters of the state.'

The state election commission has  directed Pawar to reply to the notice by October 6.