One of the richest candidates in electoral fray, Khimji Patadiya, declares assets worth Rs 514 cr but does not disclose his PAN

Hopes were high when the Supreme Court, in a historic judgment on March 13, 2003, made it mandatory for candidates contesting the parliamentary and Assembly elections to disclose their criminal, financial and educational backgrounds in affidavits submitted with their nomination papers.

But if the state of affairs in Gujarat is any indication, the SC guidelines, which even led to a parliamentary law, are still caught up in buck-passing between the State Election Commission and the Income Tax Department.

Consider this: in Gujarat, during the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, three candidates from the BJP and eight from the Congress did not disclose their Permanent Account Numbers (PAN). The same pattern was repeated in the 2007 Assembly polls, but to a much larger degree, as 37 candidates each from the BJP and Congress did not disclose their PAN details. That apart, at least 12 candidates, without PAN, had declared assets exceeding Rs 1 crore.

In this General Election, at least four candidates from the two major political parties in Gujarat have not disclosed their PAN. And to top it all, one of the richest candidates in the electoral fray, Khimji Patadiya of the Krantikari Jaihind Sena, has declared assets to the tune of Rs 514 crore without disclosing his PAN.

All these perceived discrepancies over the years should have, at least, attracted an enquiry on the part of the I-T Department, Gujarat Region. But, the department officials were completely ignorant of any developments on this front. Acknowledging that the department doesn’t have a clear-cut mandate from the Department of Revenue, (Ministry of Finance, Government of India) to scrutinise the affidavits, D S Rastogi, Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, Ahmedabad, said, “I will first consult the Directorate of IT (Investigation), Ahmedabad, and only then can I comment on the matter.”

... contd.