Modulation index is defined as the ratio of the amplitude of the modulating wave to that of the carrier wave.
So, μ=Em/Ec.
The modulation index is kept low because when Em is greater than Ec the carrier wave is over-modulated, μ > 1, which causes distortion during the reception.
The main function of a bandpass filter is to limit the bandwidth of the output signal to the band allocated for the transmission.