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Complying with a Supreme Court deadline on electoral reforms, the Election Commission on Friday prescribed an affidavit to be furnished by candidates along with their nomination papers.
"Every candidate at the time of filing his nomination paper for any election to the council of states, house of the people, legislative assembly of a state or the legislative council of a state having such a council, shall furnish full and complete information... in an affidavit," the commission said in a press note.
The Supreme Court's directives to the commission will come into force from July 1.
The Centre has convened an all-party meeting on July 8 to discuss the apex court's directions and examine what kind of legislative measures can be taken.
The court, to make the electorate aware of a candidates' antecedents, had asked the EC to frame guidelines within two months to make it mandatory for a person contesting parliamentary and assembly elections to give an affidavit with details of criminal cases against him, assets of his own, his spouse and dependants, liabilities and educational qualifications.
According to the commission, the affidavit by each candidate shall be duly sworn before a magistrate of first class or a notary public officer or a commissioner of oaths appointed by the high court of the state concerned.
Non-furnishing of the affidavit by any candidate shall be considered to be violation of the Supreme Court order and his nomination would be liable to be rejected by the returning officer, the press note said.
Furnishing of any wrong or incomplete information or suppression of any material information by any candidate in the affidavit may also result in the rejection of his nomination by the returning officer, apart from inviting penal consequences under the Indian Penal Code, it said.
The information furnished by each candidate in the affidavit shall be disseminated by the returning officers by displaying a copy of the affidavit on the notice board of his office and also by making the copies available freely and liberally to all other candidates and the representatives of the print and electronic media, the commission directives said.
If any rival candidate furnishes information to the contrary, by means of a duly sworn affidavit, then such affidavit of the rival candidates shall also be disseminated along with the affidavit of the candidate concerned.
PTI
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