THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Unaccounted cash to the tune of Rs 13 crore has been seized so far from various parts of the state by the special squads checking the flow of illegal money for electioneering. The sources of most of the funds were outside the state. In the latest instance, Rs 10 lakh wasseized from Kallambalam and Rs 1.35 crore from two persons in a Bangalore - Palakkad bus in Coimbatore on Thursday.
After the Assembly election was announced on March 4, the police had been conducting surveillance against the flow of unaccounted cash as per the instructions of the Election Commission. DIG Intelligence P. Vijayan was appointed as the nodal officer for the initiative and the police are working in tandem with revenue officials. Though there is provision for claiming the seized funds by producing the documents proving its genuine source, only around Rs 50 lakh was refunded so far. The remaining Rs 12.46 crore was unaccounted cash meant for electioneering.
“The seizures were higher than the total unaccounted cash seized during the previous elections. With the election campaigning gaining momentum, we are tightening vigil,” said Mr. Vijayan. Altogether, there were about 20 incidents of seizing unaccounted cash totalling Rs 13 crore. Apart from the seizures being made by the squads in Kerala, teams in Tamil Nadu are also seizing cash being brought to the state. Hundreds of squads are operating across the state to monitor unaccounted cash flow. Cases are being registered against the accused and the seizures are also being reported to the Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate officials.
