ECI flying squad seizes over Rs 6.5 lakh unaccounted cash

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Ulhasnagar: A flying squad of the Election Commission of India (ECI) seized Rs 6.5 lakh unaccounted cash from a man in Ulhasnagar town of Thane district on Saturday.

The seizure was made ahead of polling for 14 Lok Sabha seats -- Jalgaon, Raver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Raigad, Pune, Baramati, Ahmednagar, Madha, Sangli, Satara, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Kolhapur and Hatkanangle -- in Maharashtra on April 23.

A huge amount of unaccounted money has been found in raids and searches by authorities across the country since the Model Code of Conduct came into effect with the announcement of the poll dates on March 10.

Teams of central agencies and the ECI have been conducting raids and searches across the states to ensure illegal money is not used to influence voters in the general elections.

Over Rs 135 crore unaccounted cash was recently seized during raids by the Income Tax (IT) department and the ECI across Tamil Nadu.

In a related development, the ECI cancelled the election in Vellore parliamentary constituency in Tamil Nadu after over Rs 11.48 crore unaccounted cash was unearthed during an IT raid at a DMK leader's house. The state, which has 39 Lok Sabha seats, went to polls on April 18.

Voting for the first two phases of elections in Maharashtra, which has 48 parliamentary constituencies, was held on April 11 and 18. The next two stages of polling in the state are due on April 23 and 29.

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