EC NOW TO TRAIL CASH CARRYING IN HELICOPTERS in bihar and tamil nadu

8 Oct 2010

EXCLUSIVE

MONEY CHECK IN AIRCRAFT, COPTERS
CHARTERED FOR POLLS

By R Rajagopalan
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission is putting under check the chartered helicopters and aircraft used by the political parties and candidates in the elections to prevent transportation of huge money that is pumped in to rig the elections.

The Election Commission has sent a top secret order to Bihar state election officer and its expenditure observers to swoop over all aircraft and helicopters chartered for the election campaign and check the baggage to seize any huge cash found.

A top source in the Commission said the order was issued on the basis of submission by P K Das, Director-General of  its newly constituted Expenditure Monitoring Division, that black money used in the elections is generally carried in bags by the political parties in the chartered flights.

According to his investigation and past experience as a top Income Tax officer, it is difficult to carry huge cash in the regular commercial flights as the baggage, including the hand baggage, undergoes thorough check, but the chartered flights are not subjected to such checks and that is taken advantage by the parties to carry the cash for misuse in the elections. 

The Election Commission hopes that the new check on the chartered flights may control the abuse of money power in the elections. The Commission's permission is mandatory for the destinations at which these hired aircraft and helicopters are to land and as such its observers will have no difficulty in knowing in advance their landing places to conduct the search operations.

On the issue of the abuse of Money Power in elections, Political Parties were unanimous in their opinion that it is a menace which undermines the sanctity of the whole electoral system.

In a new rule slapped in the Bihar Assembly elections, the candidates are supposed to open a bank account and conduct their poll expenditures only through this account to enable an audit by the expenditure observers. They are supposed to first deposit whatever money they want to spend in the elections into this account and then withdraw cash for the expenditure.

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