PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 529
expenditure must be included in the return ? Mr. Goenka who has raised this matter in the course of his minute of dissent says that if the clause stands as at present, a political party will not be free or entitled to spend money on elections and he thinks that is a situation which ought not to be allowed. The political party should be permitted to spend money on elections, which a candidate—and this is the most important part—need not show in his return of election expenses. The last point that the candidate need not show is most important. It seems to me that his contention is founded on a misunderstanding of what is meant by election expenses. Since the Select Committee reported, I have myself gone a great deal into the cases which have been decided by the Election Tribunals in England over a long course of years and I would like to give to the House some of the results arrived at by the Election Tribunals in England. In considering this question, the first point that has to be borne in mind is that we are dealing with ‘election expenses’ and we have to understand very clearly what is meant by ‘election expenses’ of a candidate. Election expense means ‘expense incurred during a period beginning from the commencement of the election and ending with the conclusion of the election.’
Shri Kamath: Does commencement mean nomination or polling ?
Dr. Ambedkar : I am coming to that. It may be before that.
Therefore, we must bear this in mind—that the phrase ‘election expense’ has reference to a definite period, namely, the period commencing from the beginning of the election and the period ending with the conclusion of the election. Any expense incurred by anybody before the commencement of the election is not election expense.
Shri Kamath: What is the commencement—nomination or polling?
Dr. Ambedkar: I am coming to that. If you will let me proceed, I shall explain. I have spent some considerable time and taken considerable trouble over this, because I myself wanted to understand it.