WHY does a political worker look for a party ticket. There are two main reasons: first, he gets a recognisable symbol, and second, he gets funds from the party to contest. It’s a hard fact; elections cannot be fought without money. But in the current round of state elections, politicians were a worried lot. Scribes who travelled in the field, especially UP, reported that BJP candidates were comfortably spending on the elections but candidates from other political parties were seen struggling for more resources. One scribe informed that the Samajwadi Party faced a peculiar situation as Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav distributed resources only to his loyal candidates.
Candidates recommended by Mulayam Singh Yadav, and Shivpal Yadav were bluntly informed about the resource crunch. Surprisingly, Mulayam and Shivpal too were not inclined to distribute funds to their loyal candidates. So what kind of numbers were in play? The scribes informed that the BJP reportedly distributed around Rs. 50 lakh to each candidate whereas Akhilesh managed to allocate Rs. 20 lakh to his loyal candidates. The expenditure limit by Election Commission in the assembly elections is Rs. 28 lakh! g
