The EC launched an investigation after it found the details submitted by the parties either incomplete or questionable. It had hired a chartered accountant to assist with the investigation. The committee is preparing to recommend the commission to make it mandatory for the parties to conduct financial transactions only through banks. [break]
“We have recommended EC to make it mandatory for the parties to carry out their financial transactions only through banks,” said EC Commissioner Dolakh Bahadur Gurung, who heads a steering committee formed by the EC to study the financial details of the parties.
The report says the UCPN (Maoist) collected Rs 1.8 million in donations in the fiscal year 2007/08 but has not disclosed the source. Similarly, EC has also questioned Rs 3.5 million under the header “various income sources” disclosed by the party.
In addition, EC has also questioned the source of Rs 2 million under the header “assistance income” in the fiscal year 2008/2009. Likewise, the money collected through donations for party gatherings, which stands at Rs 540,000, has also been questioned.
The party generated Rs 1.5 million through “various sources” during the same fiscal year, but it has not disclosed the sources.
Similarly, UCPN (Maoist) collected Rs 2.2 million in assistance and Rs 900,000 in donations for assemblies and gathering during the fiscal year 2009/10, but has not disclosed the details. Similarly, it collected Rs 20 million under the title “various incomes” during the same fiscal year, but it has not disclosed the sources of income, according to the report.
Also, the party collected Rs 780,000 in “assistance” and Rs 1.6 million for gatherings during the fiscal year 2010/11, but has failed to provide the details. In same fiscal year, the party collected Rs 13.7 million through “various sources” but has not disclosed the source.
The EC has also raised questions over transparency of financial activities of NC and CPN-UML. EC report says NC has failed give the details of its income it collected as “financial assistance” for the Constituent Assembly polls in the fiscal year 2007/2008. The party had collected Rs 4 million for the election but the sources have not been disclosed.
According to the report the party collected Rs 1 million during the fiscal year 2008/09 and spent Rs 4 million under the title “special program” but has not disclosed what program it was.
Similarly, the constitutional body has found that NC generated Rs 1.8 million during the fiscal year 2009/10, but has failed to furnish details.
The party had not furnished financial details of the past four years and only submitted the details for the fiscal year 2010/2011 on Sunday.
CPN-UML is not clean either. The communist party generated Rs 10.1 million in assistance during the fiscal year 2007/08. Likewise, it generated Rs 25 million during the CA poll in 2008. CPN-UML
generated Rs 10.6 million during the fiscal year 2008/09 and as much during the fiscal year 2009/10.The party generated Rs 10.1 million during the fiscal year 2010/11. But the party has not disclosed the sources.
Meanwhile, the two committees-- steering committee and functional committee--- formed by the EC last month to study the financial activities of the political parties have recommended to the constitutional body to take necessary action against 19 political parties for not furnishing the income-expenditure details by the January 16 deadline.
According to coordinator of the steering committee, Commissioner Dolakh Bahadur Gurung, they have recommended the commission to take stringent actions against the political parties that failed to furnish their financial details.
The steering committee has made such recommendations after studying the report submitted by the functional committee headed by Madhu Prasad Regmi, who also heads legal section of the EC.
As per the existing laws, EC can annul registration of a party if it fails to furnish its audited financial reports for three consecutive years.
“We have recommended various measures to be taken against the political parties after studying their financial reports,” said Gurung, adding, “Parties that have not furnished their financial reports within the given deadline will face severe action.”
According to EC Joint Secretary Madhu Prasad Regmi, the committee is submitting its report to the Election Commission on Monday.
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