East Khasi Hills has been responsible for most of the seizures of cash ahead of the upcoming February 27 Assembly elections, Chief Electoral Officer Frederick Roy Kharkongor said today.
Authorities have been cracking down on cash, alcohol and other items being used to lure voters.
The seizures in Meghalaya’s most populous district have been “especially high”, Kharkongor said, with huge amounts seized at entry points into East Khasi Hills and within Shillong.
An election expenditure monitoring team, led by the respective Deputy Commission, is in charge of verifying whether cash seized is illegal or not. There are also 21 central expenditure observers who have been deployed for the polls.
If the documentation is in place and if the cash is genuine, then the money is released to the person. If the person cannot produce documents or the answers are doubtful, then the cash is withheld until after the election and, after the polls, the committee reviews it. If the seizure is of Rs 10 lakh or more, the Income Tax authorities are also informed.
On the issue of drugs, Kharkongor said that major seizures have been made around the state.
“There are much greater seizures now than in a non-election period because all agencies are working together in a collaborative and cohesive mode and with intensive efforts,” he said.
