Calculating candidates expenses as per SC order: CEC

Rejecting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's objections to the method of working out expenditure of candidates, Chief Election Commissioner V S Sampath today asserted the Commission was calculating the expenses as per the Supreme Court order.
"This is done strictly as per law and as per the judgement of the Supreme Court of India," he told reporters, reacting to Jayalalithaa's recent outburst against EC on the methodology adopted by it in calculating the election expenditure of candidates.
"All that we are telling a candidate is, if you go to a meeting, where specifically vote is sought for you, you will attract this provision. EC is not telling that the candidate should go or should not go. It is for the candidate to make up his mind," he said.

While Rs 70 lakh was the ceiling for a candidate, no such ceiling was there for a party, he pointed out.
Political parties can incur expenditure not for furthering chances of an individual candidate but for propagation of general party programmes and politics, he said, indirectly disapproving the contention of Jayalalithaa that EC norms prevented her from introducing the party candidates at her rallies.
Sampath rejected allegations that EC was biased and said "It is a very interesting observation. All that we can tell you is, we at the Election Commission, are neutral and we are giving instructions to our machinery to maintain neutrality.