By IANS,
Chandigarh : With the Oct 13 by-election to the Hisar Lok Sabha seat in Haryana being a high stake one, the Election Commission of India has directed income tax officials to keep a close watch on cash flow in the runup to the campaigning.
Haryana chief electoral officer Sumita Misra Monday asked Director General of Income Tax (Investigation), north-west region, Jaswant Singh to keep close surveillance over airports and state-bound flights, railway stations, hotels, farm houses, hawala agents, financial brokers, cash couriers and other suspicious agencies or persons used for movement of undisclosed cash.
The bypoll for the Hisar seat, which fell vacant due to the death of sitting MP and former Haryana chief minister Bhajan Lal June this year, is being seen as a key contest.
While the ruling Congress, which has announced three-time former MP Jai Prakash as its candidate for the contest, would want to win the seat to establish its popularity, it faces tough contest from the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and the Haryana Janhit Congress-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine.
While the INLD has fielded its general secretary and sitting legislator Ajay Singh Chautala, a son of former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala, the HJC-BJP candidate is sitting legislator Kuldeep Bishnoi, the younger son of Bhajan Lal.
Misra said the income tax department has also been asked to set up a central control room in the Hisar constituency to keep close surveillance over ostentatious expenditure, including movement of undisclosed cash and other goods.
Nominations for the by-election end on Sep 26.