EC seeks cap of poll expenditure for state legislative council seats

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission has written to the law ministry seeking a cap on expenditure for election to all state legislative council seats, as is the case with Lok Sabha and assembly polls.

In a letter sent to the law secretary on October 29, the Commission cited the majority view among recognised national and state parties favouring an amendment to Section 77 and 78 of Representation of the People Act, 1951, to provide for an expenditure ceiling for election to teachers’, graduates’ and local authorities’ constituencies in state legislative councils. The letter said the proposal had received backing from five of the seven national parties and eight of the 51 state parties at an all-party meeting held on August 27 this year as well as in written responses to a 2016 communication from EC.

Legislative councils exist in seven states—Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir, Telangana, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The Commission had earlier suggested that the expenditure limit for council elections be half of the ceiling for assembly polls in that state.

According to the EC, while three of the seven national parties had supported the expenditure ceiling in case of legislative council election at the all-party meeting in August, two others extended their backing in written response to an EC letter of November 10, 2016. “Thus five of the seven national parties have supported the proposal,” EC secretary NT Bhutia wrote to the law secretary.

As for the 51 recognised state parties and of the 34 parties that attended the all-party meeting in August, only 10 expressed their views. While eight parties endorsed the poll panel’s proposal to amend Section 77 and Section 78 of RP Act, one submitted that no change was required for council elections and another sought more discussions.

It may be recalled that the law ministry had, in response to an EC letter of May 18, 2016 seeking relevant amendments in the RP Act, suggested that the views of political parties be elicited on the issue.

In its letter sent to the law ministry last week, the EC cited the views furnished by recognised national and state parties at the August 2018 all-party meeting and through written submissions in 2016, to underline that a majority of the parties favoured the proposal. EC has now requested the law ministry to carry out the required amendments in Section 77 and 78.