BJP Candidate Booked After MCC Nodal Officer Received Call For "Help" Over Seized MoneyK Sudhakar, the former Health Minister and BJP Chikkaballapur candidate has been booked for allegedly asking for “help” from the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) nodal officer to release Rs 4.8 crore seized by the election commission officials for the alleged poll code violations. The state election body’s Flying Squad had seized the cash a day before the voting of the Chikkaballapur Lok Sabha constituency which went to polling booths in the second phase on April 26.
The Madanayakanahalli police booked the BJP candidate on April 25 after EC officials seized the case from a residence. The action was taken against Sudhakar considering the statement of the house owner they seized the money from. Notably, after the raid, Model Code of Conduct nodal officer Munish Moudgil received a WhatsApp call and several messages on his phone seeking “help” with the cash seizure incident.
During the call, the BJP candidate allegedly said to the nodal officer let it go. Munish also received a WhatsApp call on his number from Sudhakar, from the number which he has listed in his nomination papers filed with the ECI. In addition, the nodal officer also received three messages on WhatsApp asking for “help”. One of the messages stated, “Pls help I will be very grateful to you,” The News Minutes reported.
The cash was seized after MCC nodal officer Munish received information from a number saying that Rs 10 crore were kept in a house in Yelahanka, Bengaluru for bribing voters and for “misuse during the election. According to the FIR, the called has also provided the GPS location of the house from where Rs 4.8 crore were seized. The IAS officer then directed the jurisdictional income tax officials who conducted a raid and seized the money.
Dasharatha V Kumbar, a member of the Election Commission who filed the complaint against Sudhakar, explained that the officials were “prime facie convinced that the money was meant to be used to bribe voters and for other misuse misuses during elections”.
However, the police booked the BJP candidate under Sections 171E (bribery), 171F (undue influence or personation at an election), 171B (bribery to exercise any electoral right), 171C (undue influence at elections) of the Indian Penal Code, and Section 123 (corrupt practices) of the Representation of People Act.