EC pre-poll seizure at ₹4,650 crore
The Election Commission of India (EC) on Monday announced a record haul of inducements ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
A staggering ₹4,650 crore in cash, drugs, liquor, precious metals, and freebies was seized between 1 March and 13 April. This marks a 34% increase from the ₹3,475 crore seized during the entire 2019 election campaign.
Compared to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the current seizures show significant increases across all categories. Cash seizures rose by 114%, while liquor and precious metal seizures rose by 61% and 43% respectively.
Drug seizures saw a whopping 62% increase, at ₹2,068 crore.
“Enforcement agencies have made a record seizure of over ₹4,650 crore in ECI’s resolute fight against money power even before the first phase of polling for the 18th Lok Sabha elections commences on Friday,” The EC said in a statement.
The commission attributed the increase in enforcement to deployment of advanced technologies, such as the Election Seizure Management System (ESMS), and the collaboration of multiple enforcement agencies both at the central and state levels.
The EC has identified 123 Parliamentary constituencies as expenditure-sensitive, nd ramped up vigilance efforts by deploying 781 expenditure observers to monitor them. Additionally, it took “strict action” against 106 government servants, who were “assisting politicians in campaigning” in violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).