CHENNAI: THE Assembly polls for the constituencies of Thanjavur town and Aravakurichi in Karur district that were re-scheduled for Monday (May 23) have been postponed by three more weeks, R Niranjan, counsel for Election Commission of India, told the Madras High Court on Friday.
The counsel was responding to the writ petitions from M S Ramalingam, BJP candidate for Thanjavur, and M Baskaran, PMK candidate for Aravakurichi, seeking to postpone the polls by three more months. The petitioners had sought the disqualification of the AIADMK and the DMK candidates for their alleged involvement in corrupt practices. The pleas were heard by a vacation bench of justices K Kalyanasundaram and D Krishnakumar.
Niranjan submitted that the Election Commission of India had decided to postpone the election by three more weeks in the two constituencies. In the meantime, the Election Commission of India will make an assessment of the situation in the constituencies and give an opportunity to the candidates to submit their versions, before taking an appropriate decision.
Recording the submission of the counsel, the vacation bench adjourned further hearing into the writ petitions after vacation.
In his petition, Ramalingam, a resident of Srinivasa Colony in Thanjavur, submitted that the Supreme Court in a verdict delivered on July 5, 2013 in the S Subramaniam Balaji vs Tamil Nadu government and others case had directed the Election Commission of India to frame guidelines on the electoral promises by political parties. Taking advantage of the failure on the part of the Election Commission of India to come up with the regulations, the DMK and the AIADMK had indulged in corrupt practices in the constituency, the BJP candidate from Thanjavur alleged.
Following complaints, including one from the Returning Officer, the Election Commission of India postponed the polls in Thanjavur constituency to May 23, the petitioner said, adding that deferring polling by merely five days would not set right the misconduct of the candidates. The Election Commission of India should adjourn the elections by three months and disqualify the candidates who had bribed the voters, the petitioner contended.
Poll put off to June 13,Karunanidhi upset
DMK chief M Karunanidhi took strong exception to the Election Commission decision to postpone polling in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur till June 13. He warned that he would lead a protest if the polling was not conducted on May 23.
