In compliance with the Election Commission's directives, police keeps a tab on flow of cash and liquor during elections. On many instances, huge amounts are seized by police from various persons who were carrying them to different places. After all what happens to these seized amounts? How is that the amounts find way back to their owners?

Recently an RTI query on the seized amounts in Mahboobnagar district, during bypolls in March this year, revealed that whereas 78 instances of cash seizure were reported, just one case was booked. And, of the total amount of Rs 2 crore seized, Rs 1.7 crore was returned. Mahbubnagar district police said that 78 cash seizures of amounts ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 30 lakh (adding up to Rs 2 crore) were reported in different parts of the district in the lead up to the election which was held on March 18. However, barring that one chargesheet, the rest went scot free with their money.

In each case, the money seized was handed over to the revenue tehsildar who then checked if it was for legitimate use or for influencing voters. Curiously, all cases were found to be genuine which means the money had to be returned to the rightful owners. The lone case booked was against the supervisor of Punjab steel plant in Hyderabad. In Mahbubnagar’s Devarkadra mandal alone, police reported 51 cash seizures but local officials now say that all that money was genuine. An official from Amarabad mandal, which reported 14 such incidents, said: "They were all petty cases. The money was either for personal or financial or commercial use. Hence we returned it."

However, Chief state electoral officer Bhanwar Lal expressed surprise over the RTI reply. "It is not possible that only one case has been booked out of 78 instances of cash seizure. I will verify this. At the same time, it is also true that not all cash seizures will result in FIRs being booked. There will be only a few cases where criminality is involved or when the cash is to be used to influence elections. In case the seized money is unaccounted for then it goes to the Income Tax department," he said.