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During the campaign for the current Lok Sabha elections, authorities have seized Rs 250 crore in unaccounted cash across the country, a rise of 31.5 per cent compared to Rs 190 crore seized during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
So far, 349 constituencies have voted in the six phases of the elections so far; polling for 194 constituencies is yet to take place.
Unaccounted cash is usually meant to influence voters. This time, to prevent the movement of such cash, the Election Commission has taken several steps, including the appointment of expenditure observers for every Lok Sabha constituency.
On Friday, a surveillance team seized Rs 8 crore in cash from a person travelling in a public vehicle in Shamshabad in Andhra Pradesh. On Wednesday, 17 constituencies in the state will go to the polls.
| INFLUENCED ELECTIONS |
Seizures made so far from across the country after the model code of conduct came into force on March 5
Source: Election Commission |
Authorities have also seized intoxicants such as heroin and liquor in large quantities. So far, 13 million litres of liquor and 104 kg of heroin have been confiscated.
The most unaccounted cash and liquor — Rs 110 crore and 7.7 million litres of liquor — have been seized in Andhra Pradesh. This was followed by Tamil Nadu, where authorities seized Rs 39 crore in cash; in Karnataka, Rs 20.52 crore in cash was confiscated.
The quantity of liquor seized was the second-highest in Gujarat, a dry state.
A member of the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-profit entity working for electoral reforms in India, said though the role of black money in elections had grown, the Election Commission’s observation standards, too, had improved through the years.
“Inflation has led to expenditure overflow in elections, leading to situations in which black money is used extensively. However, the observation standards and mechanism have also improved, leading to more seizures of cash and material by the Election Commission,” said an ADR member.
