EC directs Delhi govt to recover cost of CWG ads from officers

The Election Commission has taken serious note of full page advertisements in major dailies on the Commonwealth Games and directed the Delhi government to recover the cost from the personal accounts of those who released them.

In a letter to Cabinet secretary, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and chief secretary of Delhi government, the EC sought the names of officers who authorised the release
of those advertisements and the total expenditure incurred on them.

"The total cost of the advertisements should be recovered from the personal accounts of the officers and persons responsible for the release of the advertisements," it said.

The advertisement enumerated the achievements of the Central government and the Delhi Government regarding the development works carried out in the capital which included 24 flyovers, 75 aerobridge airport, 1285 kms of better roads and 5000 low floor buses, the EC pointed out.

"This is a clear violation of the Model Code of Conduct which prohibits publication of the achievements of the governments at the cost of the public exchequer," the EC said
and sought a compliance report by Monday.