Vivek Chhetri, TT, Darjeeling, July 3: The Darjeeling district authorities have revealed that they have not been notified what the candidate expendi-ture ceiling should be for the Gorkhaland Territorial Authority (GTA) elections.
The state hill affairs department has also not said anything on the declaration of assets of the contestants or whether candidates have to file affidavits as a check for previous criminal record. Gorkha Janmukti Morcha rivals have cited these holes in the rules to say the polls are an “eyewash”.
The matter may be a case of “omission” on the government’s part, as a Writers’ Building official has said, but if it goes unaddressed, it could mean unbridled spending by candidates. Voters, too, would not get a picture of their candidate’s wealth, nor their criminal record, if they have one.
The state hill affairs department is conducting the GTA elections, not the state election commission.
In all elections conducted by the Election Commission, whether to the Parliament or the Assemblies, there is a cap on the money a candidate can spend during campaigning. The candidates have to nominate an expenditure agent and are disallowed from moving in a convoy of more than three vehicles.
A Darjeeling district official said the authorities had not received any order regarding candidate’s expenditure, declaration of assets or submission of affidavits while filing nominations. “As of today, there is no order on the expenditure limit. Candidates do not need to declare their assets or submit an affidavit (regarding court cases) while filing their nominations,” the official said.
In Calcutta, a senior official in the home department at Writers’ Buildings said the absence of a cap on the poll expenses was a “simple case of omission”. “Some political parties have invited our attention to the matter. We can issue a notification soon with regard to the ceiling. The omission was not deliberate,” he said.
Writers’ sources said the government could issue a guideline on the election expenditure “anytime” before July 12, the last date for the withdrawal of nominations.
“It’s not too late to issue the guideline. We have time till July 12. But we will have to take the final call on that,” said a Writers’ official.
If the “omission” line is true, then it is another instance of the government being caught on the wrong foot in a big matter. On the Singur bill, the state government had not taken presidential assent and gone with the governor’s assent, only to lose the case in the high court.
In Bengal, the upper spending limit for a candidate is Rs 40 lakh in parliamentary elections and Rs 16 lakh in Assembly polls.
In a small state such as Sikkim, the limit is Rs 27 lakh in the Lok Sabha polls and Rs 8 lakh in Assembly elections. The Election Commission has come up with separate expenditure limits according to the size of states to deal with the use of black money in elections.
The state election commission, which conducts municipal elections, has specified expenditure limits. Candidates for a civic ward having less than 6,000 voters can spend Rs 21,000. If a ward has more voters, the ceiling is Rs 35,000.
Darjeeling district magistrate Saumitra Mohan, who is also the election officer, said all attempts would be made to ensure that money power does not influence the results. “We will keep tabs on spending by the candidates and the source of their funds. We will also immediately act if there are specific complaints in this regard,” Mohan said. District officials said they could use Section 4 of the model code of conduct to curb “corrupt practices”.
“All parties and candidates shall avoid scrupulously all activities which are corrupt practices and offences… such as bribing of voters, intimidation of voters, impersonating of voters, canvassing within 100 meters of a polling station, holding public meetings during the period of 48 hours ending with the hour fixed for the close of polling and the transport and conveyance of voters to and from polling stations,” the section reads.
Morcha rivals have raised questions on the fairness of the July 29 elections.
“The elections are an eyewash. There is a big question mark on the fairness of the elections. There are many officers, whose family members are directly related to the Morcha. There has been no transfer of officers from the home district (ahead of the polls),” said Pratap Khati, the general secretary of the ABGL.
“It is surprising that candidates do not have to declare their assets or submit an affidavit. The polls will not reflect the people’s wishes and it is only a matter of time before the issue of statehood comes to the fore again,” he added.
The Darjeeling district officials said they may receive an order from the hill affairs department, stating that the maximum expenditure limit would be the same like in the Assembly elections.
“We might receive an order stating that the limit for a candidate in the GTA polls would be calculated according to the Election Commission norms. We might have to divide the number of GTA constituencies in an Assembly segment and then work out a proportional expenditure limit. However, we are not sure whether an expenditure observer would be assigned on duty,” said an official.
This means if there are eight GTA constituencies in an Assembly segment, then the maximum expenditure limit for a candidate could be Rs 2 lakh. This is because the maximum amount an Assembly poll candidate can spend is Rs 16 lakh in Bengal.
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