14 candidates get notices, but EC can’t take further action

CANDIDATES WHO HAVE RECEIVED NOTICES

MUMBAI: While election authorities seem to have kept a strict vigil on the distribution of cash and freebies during the poll season, cases of paid news will be left unattended because there is no provision to deal with it.

In Mumbai, local election authorities have found 14 candidates, all from prominent parties, allegedly engaged in getting favourable articles published in regional newspapers in the past few days.

There are several Marathi newspapers where paid news items have been found.

While the election authority in Mumbai city sent 12 notices to seven candidates in 10 Assembly constituencies in its jurisdiction, the election authority in the suburbs sent 13 notices to seven candidates in 26 constituencies.

However, no action can be taken against them because there is no provision for it under the Representation of the People Act. So the local election authorities cannot do anything except send notices.

Mumbai suburban district collector Shekhar Channe, who is also the local election officer, said “After candidates

fail to convince us that the articles are not paid news items, we consider these items as an advertisement. We then add a price value to these advertisements in the respective candidate’s expenditure sheet,” said Channe.

Congress candidate Rajhans Singh, BJP candidate Mohit Kamboj, both from Dindoshi, MNS candidate Nitin Sardesai from Mahim, Congress candidate Amin Patel are among the candidates who have received

notices.

NCP candidate from Sion Koliwada, Prasad Lad, Shiv Sena candidate Arvind Dudhwadkar and Susieben Shah, both from Malabar Hill, have also received notices in paid news cases.

There is Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC) each in the city and the suburbs, which keep a tab on paid news being published in newspapers and on telecast on news channels.