Uttarakhand News: The State Election Commission has imposed strict rules along with increasing the expenditure limit for the upcoming municipal elections in Uttarakhand. Now it will be mandatory for all candidates to submit the details of election expenditure with proof. If the details are not given, the concerned candidate will be banned from contesting elections for three years.

State Election Commissioner Sushil Kumar has issued the "Maximum Election Expenditure and its Auditor Order 2024". It has been clarified that every candidate will have to submit the account of his election expenditure to the District Election Officer within 30 days of the declaration of election results. Along with this, it will be mandatory to submit a verified copy and affidavit.

The District Election Officer will inspect the expenditure details submitted by the candidates. If any discrepancy is found in any document, then the State Election Commission will be informed about it. The Commission will put up a notice on the notice board in such cases and will give the candidate time to respond within 20 days.

Action for not providing details of expenditure
The Election Commission has also made a provision that if within 20 days the candidate does not give a proper reply or does not submit the correct details of expenditure, then he will be banned from participating in any election for three years. This initiative of the State Election Commission has been taken with the aim of ensuring transparency and accountability in the electoral process. The Commission believes that this step will curb irregularities and ensure compliance with the rules of election expenditure.

The returning officers have been given the responsibility of monitoring the expenditure of the candidates during the election process. The returning officers will call the candidates at least three times during the election and match their expenditure. If any candidate avoids inspection, a show cause notice will be issued to him. If he does not respond even after this, action will be taken under Section 177 of the Indian Penal Code.

Strict step for transparency
The State Election Commission has directed all candidates to keep accurate details of all expenditure activities done during the election campaign. This rule of the commission will be equally applicable to candidates for all posts of Municipal Corporation, Municipality and Nagar Panchayat. Under the new instructions, the limit of election expenditure for candidates has been increased. This will give more freedom to the candidates to spend, but along with this they will also have to fulfill the responsibility of maintaining transparency.

This initiative of the State Election Commission is a big step towards making the electoral process in Uttarakhand more transparent and systematic. This will stop electoral irregularities and ensure equal opportunities for all candidates. This strict rule will not only motivate the candidates to work responsibly, but will also strengthen the public's faith in the electoral process.