SHILLONG, Jan 5: Taking note of the cases of candidates doling out cash to woo voters during Assembly polls, the office of the state chief electoral officer (CEO) has launched a campaign against allurement.
“Say no to note, say yes to vote,” a social media post from the CEO’s office read, urging people to not fall prey to candidates who buy votes.
Trying to explain the importance of a vote, the post said there are 1,825 days in five years and if a person takes Rs 15,000, his or her worth is Rs 8 per day and the worth of an individual taking Rs 10,000 is Rs 5 per day.
The worth of a person accepting Rs 5,000 and Rs 2,000 to cast vote is worth Rs 2 and Re 1 per day respectively, the post said.
New political parties have been harping on the need for clean politics and stopping the use of cash during elections.
Many aspirants have allegedly been distributing money in their respective constituencies besides giving freebies to prospective voters. Some aspirants have admitted that their expenses have gone up while claiming they are not enticing the voters but helping people who come to them seeking solutions to their problems.
A group of citizens had a few days ago lodged a complaint against Transport Minister Dasakhiatbha Lamare for allegedly distributing money in the Nongkrem constituency. He is planning to contest the polls from this seat.
East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Isawanda Laloo summoned the complainants to record their statements.
Many candidates are apparently rushing to “buy” votes before the election code of conduct kicks in.
