Congress asks CEC to stop KCR and other CMs in Poll-bound states from misusing funds for publicity

The Congress has petitioned the chief election commissioner (CEC) demanding that the “caretaker” chief minister of Telangana and his counterparts in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh be prevented from tapping into public funds for undertaking pre-poll “yatras” and for unleashing pre-poll propaganda blitzkrieg on policy decisions of the respective governments.

Quoting from a recent Rajasthan High Court division bench order setting parameters on government conduct ahead of election season, the chairman of Congress party’s legal cell, Vivek Tankha, in his letter to the CEC demanded that the commission “issue peremptory orders to the chief secretary of the state of Telangana to ensure no public money is indulged or utilised by the caretaker government on advertisements with pictures of the caretaker chief minister on hoardings, banners and advertisements etc”.

Tankha wrote further, “In view of the impending elections in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, chief secretaries of the state should be sent an advisory to stop all public expenditure on the yatras of chief minister by whatsoever name they are conducted as these are party motivated yatras and have no element of public interest involved”.