EC warns of ‘income-tax’ raids if cash-for-vote practice is found out

The State Election Commission has warned political parties that income-tax raids would be conducted if indulgence of any party in cash-for-vote practice was found out.

The Commission’s control room has so far received 232 complaints of cash-for-vote attempt by political parties; 227 of those complaints were attended to and disposed off, the Commission says.  Rs.5.31 lakhs have so far been seized after the poll-schedule for the R.K. Nagar Assembly by-poll was released, the Commission says.

Political parties in the fray have intensified their campaign as it is less than a week for the campaigning to be concluded in R.K. Nagar which is to vote on 21st December to elect its new representative in place of deceased former chief-minister J. Jayalalithaa. The EC found it almost impossible to stop the flow of cash in the form of cash-for-vote practice in April when the by-polls slated to be held on 12th April were cancelled.

EC has received information that voters of the constituency were being paid in cash and in kind ‘outside’ the constituency so as not to attract the EC’s attention. It is in this backdrop that the EC has warned political parties that income-tax raids would follow if practice of cash-for-vote or distribution of any other items to voters is found.