New Delhi: A series of raids have been undertaken on the top state leaders by the Election Comission prior to the beginning of the second phase of elections.
An attempt to raid the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi' chopper in Sambalpur was however, foiled as the Prime Miniter falls under the category of Special Protection Group (SPG) protectee. The officer who checked PM's chopper, Mohammed Mohsin (IAS) of Karnataka cadre who was posted as General Observer was subsequently suspended for not acting in conformity with the EC's instructions concerning SPG protectees, according to an order issued by the commission.
BJD president and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's chopper was checked by personnel of the Election Commission's flying squad in Rourkela on Tuesday, party sources said. In addition, the Karnataka Chief Minister, H D Kumaraswamy's chopper, Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan's chopper and the former Puducherry Chief Minister, N Rangaswamy's house also underwent raids. The residence of DMK MP Kanimozhi in Thoothukudi in south Tamil Nadu was also raided. None of the above raids were succesful.
Amongst the success stories, the Income-Tax (IT) Department seizure of Rs 1.48 crore cash stashed allegedly by supporters of TTV Dhinakaran's AMMK party to bribe voters in Tamil Nadu's Theni district, stands out. Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader Thanga Tamilselvan said Wednesday his party had nothing to do with the cash seized by tax officials and alleged it was a drama enacted by the ruling AIADMK. Election Commission has sought a detailed report from poll authorities there.
Every general election, the Election Commission appoints officers from the IT department as Election observers to monitor if the election funds handled by an individual candidate is within the permissible limit.These raids are possibly a response to the widespread criticism against the Election Commission that it only targets opposition leaders and not the ruling class.
(With inputs from PTI)
