CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M Appavu has accepted the resignation of S Vijayadharani, as a member of the House since her resignation letter has been submitted in the correct format following due procedures.
A senior official in the State Assembly told TNIE that the Vilavancode Assembly constituency represented by Vijayadharani so far will be declared soon.
However, when asked about the status of the Thirukovilur Assembly constituency represented by former Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy, the official said only the Assembly Speaker can clarify that.
After the Supreme Court, on January 30, refused to grant an interim stay on the three-year- jail sentence ordered by the Madras High Court to Ponmudy and his wife in a disproportionate assets case.
Following this, the name of Pomudy was removed from the list of the Council of Ministers on the Tamil Nadu government website. However, in the list of members of the State Assembly, Ponmudy continues to represent the Thirukovilur Assembly constituency.
Meanwhile, answering queries from reporters in Tirunelveli, Assembly Speaker M Appavu said on scrutiny, he found that the resignation letter of Vijayadharani is in the correct format. Appavu also said Vijayadharani called him over the telephone today (Sunday morning) and informed him that since he joined the BJP, she had resigned as MLA of Vilavancode constituency.
According to the rules, if any member of the Assembly resigns and if the constituency is declared vacant, a by-election has to be conducted within six months. As such, now it is up to the Election Commission of India to decide whether to notify the by-election to the Vilavancode Assembly constituency along with the forthcoming Lok Sabha election or hold the by-election later.
