EC declares 53 UP seats as 'expenditure sensitive'
merisarkar news service New Delhi, November 27, 2011
EC will track election expenditure
The Election Commission has declared 53 assembly seats as "expenditure sensitive" and prone to "high illegal funding and corrupt practices" in poll bound Uttar Pradesh.
A high-level team of the panel has also begun a tour of the state starting on Sunday to chalk out preparations in this regard with the Income Tax department and other enforcement authorities for curbing use of illegal funds during polls.
The EC team is expected to meet the Director General of Investigations (Income Tax) and his team in Lucknow to review the deployment of I-T officials in these money 'sensitive' constituencies.
"The EC team is arriving in the state for analysing poll preparedness and checking measures put in place to curb use of money power during elections in the state. A total of 53 constituencies have been declared as expenditure sensitive in Uttar Pradesh which is the largest in all the states going to polls in 2012," a top I-T official said.
Some of the seats identified as "expenditure sensitive" include Lucknow, Mathura, Agra, Gautam Budh Nagar, Mainpuri, Bareilly, Rai Bareilly, Chitrakoot, Gonda, Azamgarh and Gazipur.
According to EC rules, an 'expenditure sensitive constituency' is identified "on the basis of past history, profile of the constituency and the state Chief Election Commissioner's office identifies such seats which are prone to high expenditure and corrupt practices".
