Calculating candidate expenses based on Supreme Court order, says EC

Chennai: The Election Commission on Saturday said it was following the guidelines set out in the Supreme Court order while calculating poll expenses of candidates and political outfits across the country, rejecting the allegations by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa who had called the methodology into question.

The Commission's clarification comes days after Jayalalithaa termed the norms of EC to calculate candidates expenses as a "mockery of democracy" and threatened to challenge it in a court.

She had opposed the debiting of expenses incurred on campaign rallies organized by a party to the account of its candidate if he or she is introduced from the dais or his or her name is mentioned in the rally.

EC cited the Supreme Court judgement in Kanwar Lal Gupta Vs Amar Nath Chawala (AIR 1975 SC 308), which said expenditure incurred by the party, which can be related to the expenditure for promoting the prospects of any particular candidate or group of candidates, shall be accounted for by such candidate(s).

It further cited its instructions in 2004, 2007 and 2014 and contended the contents of these provisions have also been incorporated in its Compendium of Instructions on EEM (January 2014), issued to all CEOs in January 2014.

The state officials were only complying with the instructions of EC and the Supreme Court order, the release said.