The war of words over Wednesday’s midnight raid at a hotel where Congress leaders were staying, over suspicion of black money in bypoll-bound Palakkad, has intensified with the ruling CPI(M) seeking a probe into the incident.

As the police returned “empty-handed”, the CPI(M) and Congress accused each other of “conspiring with the BJP” in the constituency, which will see a bypoll on November 20, necessitated by the election of sitting Congress MLA Shafi Parambil to the Lok Sabha from Vatakara.

A look at the row, and the Election Commission (EC) rules regarding this:

On Wednesday, the Kerala Police conducted searches in Palakkad, including in hotel rooms where prominent Congress leaders like Bindu Krishna and Shanimol Usman were staying.

“We acted on secret information that illegal money was kept in a hotel in Palakkad. Our teams searched 12 rooms, where leaders of all three parties (Congress, CPI-M and BJP) were staying. We had also informed the flying squad, deputed to seize illegal money during elections. We followed all the procedures. In one room, where the women were staying, the occupants sought the presence of a woman police officer for search and we ensured that too. The search did not yield anything. The information did not refer to any specific political party,” Palakkad District Superintendent of Police R Anand later said.

Accusing the CPI(M) of misusing police machinery and terming the police action “scripted”, state Congress president K Sudhakaran has said the CPI(M) and BJP conspired for the raid and that it was meant to “save face”.

“The EC and election officials have been helpless bystanders. It must be noted that before the scripted raid, CPI(M) and BJP workers had reached the hotel… The police did not secure the hotel, giving opportunity for the CPI(M) and BJP workers to create conflict,” Sudhakaran, who has approached the EC over the incident, said.

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra condemned the incident on Thursday, calling it “wrong.” “It was wrong for male policemen to enter women’s rooms in the middle of the night under the pretext of a hotel raid,” she told Asianet News.

Claiming that CCTV footage showed a Congress worker arriving at the hotel with a trolley bag, CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan has accused the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) of releasing the footage of the raid to the media. “There is evidence that black money was brought to Palakkad. Therefore, a probe in this regard is required,” he said.

BJP state president K Surendran said the “arrangement” between the Congress and CPI(M) “for the past several years” ensured that the police assisted Congress leaders in moving black money from the hotel. “It is clear that black money was brought to the hotel. However, the police acted to help Congress workers move the money before the raids,” he claimed.

Prior to every election, the EC issues detailed instructions to the police, railways, airports, the Income Tax department, and other enforcement agencies, to keep a strict vigil on the movement of cash, liquor, jewellery, drugs and gifts — anything which could be distributed during polls.

It also appoints expenditure observers for every district, alongside static surveillance teams (SST) and flying squads. The flying squads comprise a Senior Executive Magistrate as the head, a senior police officer, a videographer, and three or four armed police personnel.

The EC keeps an eye on campaign expenditure by candidates, which is capped at Rs 95 lakh per constituency in bigger states, and Rs 75 lakh per constituency in smaller ones.

According to EC instructions, the CISF or police authorities at airports are supposed to “instantaneously report to the Income Tax Department” anyone carrying cash worth more than Rs.10 lakh, or more than 1 kg in bullion. The Income Tax Department then has to “make necessary verification and take necessary measures if no satisfactory explanation is given. This means that cash or bullion can be seized till verification is completed in order to ensure that it is not related to any political party or candidate.

While the poll panel says seizure of cash more than Rs 10 lakh not found to be linked to a crime or political party is not necessary and must be simply reported to the I-T, if there is a vehicle in which a candidate, polling agent or party worker is found with over Rs 50,000 in cash or drugs, liquor, arms, or gift items worth over Rs 10,000, the cash or other items is seized.

In case any cash or other items are seized, authorities are mandated to return them if they are not related to any candidate or a crime.

A district-level committee is empowered to look at grievances, “to avoid inconvenience to the public and genuine persons”. The EC’s SoP mandates the committee, comprising the district election office’s nodal officer for expenditure monitoring, and the district treasury officer, to suo motu examine each case of seizure where no FIR/complaint has been filed, or where the seizure is not linked with any candidate, political party or election campaign. It also mandates the panel to take immediate steps to return any cash seized.

The constituency has hit the headlines as the BJP has finished runner-up in the seat in the last two Assembly elections though the Congress has retained it thrice.

Since the announcement of the bypoll, the Congress is facing rebellion after its leader P Sarin quit over denial of a ticket. He subsequently entered the fray as an Independent and is now backed by the CPI(M). The BJP has fielded C Krishnakumar from the seat, but is also facing rebellion from one of its own leaders.