Bellary: ECs new poll regulations in full force

BANGALORE: Bellary, that has been in the news for alleged electoral malpractices, will be a test bed for the election commission’s measures to curb poll offences. For the first time in the state, in a measure to monitor election-related expenditure, the Election Commission has directed all candidates to open poll-specific bank accounts for operating their finances. “The funds for all election-related expenditure must be drawn only by a single poll-specific account. All payments above `20,000 must be paid through cheque. This measure is expected to bring down the menace of money power during the elections,” R Manoj, special officer (elections) told reporters here on Saturday. The ceiling for expenditure for the Assembly elections is `16 lakh, an increase from last election’s `10 lakh. “This ceiling is for the candidate and not for political parties. But we have a set of standard operating procedures (SoPs) to study the parties’ expenditure. One such measure is to get details of expenditure incurred for a public meeting or a visit of a leader in writing from party representatives on a daily basis. It will be compared with the actual statement that the political party submits after the elections,” Manoj explained. The EC has deployed 18 flying squads and established eight integrated checkposts to monitor the movement of candidates and party workers. “Nobody should carry more than `10,000 in cash. Any amount above the limit must be justified,” he said.In yet another measure to prevent people from approaching political parties’ desk in front of polling booths to collect voters’ slip, the EC itself will distribute voter slips four to five days in advance. “In case officials fail to deliver the voter slips, then a special help desk will be opened in front of all polling booths where voters will get their slips,” Manoj added. According to him, there is online monitoring of vehicle movements of political parties and the details of the permission given to the candidates for operating the number of vehicles are hosted on the website.