Election Commission seizes Rs1.45 crore worth of gold and silver from Chennai, Salem.
EC flying squad members look at the haul of sarees and dhotis seized from a pump set room at a farmhouse in Karumandurai. -DC
Chennai, Salem: The intensified drive by the Election Commission officials raiding the vehicles in and around Yercaud assembly constituency has revealed the movement of gold and silver materials without bills. The owners are now lining up with purchase slips and are being given back materials after the levy of tax, poll officials said. The consignment of seized gold was returned to its Bangalore-based owner after he produced the relevant documents.
In the case of the unaccounted money, so far, Rs 25 lakh of the total Rs1.45 crore seized was returned to the owners after they produced the proof of money transactions, Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Kumar told DC.
The drive will continue during the model code period and field level officials have been warned of action if found violating election norms. All steps are in place to ensure a free and fair bye poll, the official said, adding that complaints were also pouring in from political parties, leading to the EC’s intervention.
“People were complaining that those involved in checking vehicles and performing poll duties were unfriendly. We have instructed them to be polite,” the top official said. He added that all the unaccounted money would be transferred to the Income Tax department for further investigations.
“Since the first week of October, so far, 16 cases of unaccounted money and assets were registered, and of them, seven people who produced proof were refunded their money and gold,” said Mr. T. Sabapathy, Returning Officer of the Yercaud assembly poll.
A few said that they would come back with proof in a day or two. During the vehicle patrol, silver bars weighing around 7.5 kg and silver ornaments worth Rs 80,000 were also seized. The ornaments were returned after the owner produced bills, but no bills have been produced in connection with the silver bars, he added.
Over 800 sarees, dhotis seized
Salem: Bundles of saris and dhotis, ostensibly meant for free distribution to voters in bypoll-bound Yercaud AsseÂmbly constituency, were seized by the election flying squad here.
About 815 saris and 800 dhotis were seized from a pump set room at a farmhouse in KaruÂmandurai hamlet, belonging to a relative of a DMK functionary, officials claim. The flying squad claimed that they received a tip off at midnight on Thursday and two hours later, the squad descended on the farmhouse of B.Thenmozhi, sister of a former DMK MLA, Udhayasuryan.
In another haul, 174 dhotis stashed in a salon at a commercial complex in Yercaud were seized. Officials claimed that the complex belonged to a DMK functionar, Manoharan.
( Source : dc )
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