Calling for electoral reforms, CPI (M) general secretary Prakash Karat on Wednesday said the prevalence of cash for votes has been established and needs to be controlled. He also hinted at Ministers of having “interests” in big business, indicating a conflict of interests.
Speaking at a public meeting on ‘Corruption and Corporate Loot', he said Rs. 200 crore was spent in Madurai before the elections.
Bribes
“It was well known that in the last Lok Sabha, the government tried to win over MPs and hundreds of crores were spent to bribe them at that time,” Mr. Karat said.
“We have evidence that money was distributed at doorsteps for votes and the Rs.50 crore that was seized is less than one per cent of the money spent,” he alleged.
He said there is a pressing need for ushering in electoral reforms and that there is a serious problem of black money that needs to be curbed.
Business interests
Mr. Karat also took a dig at ruling party leaders and their interests in business houses. He said there was a growing tendency to have business persons as ministers, citing the example of Dayanidhi Maran who was appointed Telecom Minister, despite being the owner of the biggest cable company and appointing lawyers as ministers who have in the past represented various companies.
