Chennai: Holding that he had suppressed his belongings and sources of revenue within the election affidavit, the Madras Excessive Court docket Thursday annulled the 2019 election of O.P. Ravindranath Kumar, the one MP from Tamil Nadu belonging to the Nationwide Democratic Alliance (NDA), from the Theni Lok Sabha seat. The courtroom held Kumar responsible of submitting a defective nomination affidavit.
Nonetheless, on Kumar’s lawyer A.Okay. Sriram’s request, Justice S.S. Sundar granted a 30-day keep on the decision, to permit Kumar to attraction to the Supreme Court docket.
Kumar, who’s the son of former chief minister and expelled All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) chief O.Panneerselvam (OPS), was the only real winner of the AIADMK-BJP alliance within the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the place the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and its allies swept 38 of the state’s 39 seats.
Whereas the AIADMK has refused to get entangled within the matter, saying that OPS and Kumar have been not a part of the occasion, the DMK hailed it as a “landmark judgment”.
Kumar and his father have been expelled from the AIADMK final 12 months for alleged “anti-party actions”.
In December 2021, the AIADMK had witnessed a factional feud, between OPS and Edappadi Okay Palaniswami (EPS). In February this 12 months, the Supreme Court docket had held EPS to be the chief of the AIADMK. Earlier, in July final 12 months, the AIADMK normal council, attended by 2,460 of the almost 2,600 members, had unanimously elected EPS as its chief and ousted OPS and his supporters.
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Petition in opposition to Kumar
P. Milany, a voter from Theni, had filed a petition in 2019 underneath Part 81 of the Illustration of the Individuals Act of 1951, difficult Kumar’s election. She accused him of abusing his father’s place because the then deputy chief minister and utilizing authorities sources to win the election.
The petition, which ThePrint has accessed, additionally alleged that Kumar’s brother had distributed saris, value Rs 1,000 every, to bribe voters to vote for him within the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Milany additionally alleged that Kumar had not disclosed his shareholding in a non-public firm in his nomination affidavit.
The courtroom in its judgment stated, “This courtroom holds that the affidavit filed underneath Rule 4[A] of the Conduct of Election Guidelines, 1961, has not been validly made. Additional, this courtroom holds that the Returned Candidate (OP Ravindranath) has suppressed his belongings equal to the worth of 15,000 fairness shares in M/s.Vani Materials Non-public Restricted allegedly transferred by the Returned Candidate in favour of his brother and different belongings and sources of revenue as admitted by him.”
“Additional, the third respondent has given false info within the Election Affidavit filed underneath Rule 4[A] of the Conduct of Election Guidelines, 1961,” it added.
ThePrint has accessed the judgment.
The courtroom additionally said that the Returning Officer had didn’t conduct the abstract inquiry throughout scrutiny of nomination in accordance with the regulation.
On the problem of corrupt practices within the elections, the courtroom held that the petitioner was unable to determine corrupt practices as outlined underneath part 123 of the Illustration of Individuals Act, 1951 (any present, provide or promise by a candidate or his agent or by every other particular person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent of any gratification).
Declaring Kumar’s election void on the bottom of improper acceptance of nomination and suppression of sources of revenue within the election affidavit, the courtroom stated his nomination was wrongly accepted, and nullified his election.
Apparently, Milany has additionally filed a case in opposition to former CM and AIADMK normal secretary EPS within the Salem Judicial Justice of the Peace courtroom, alleging that he had lied about his belongings and training in his nomination papers for the Edappadi meeting seat within the 2021 state meeting election. The matter is at present sub judice.
‘Landmark judgment’
Within the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Kumar had confronted E.V.Okay.S Elangovan of the Congress and Thanga Tamilselvan of the T.T.V. Dhinakaran-led Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam and gained by an enormous margin of 76,672 votes.
Thanga Tamilselvan, who switched to the DMK in June 2019 and is now DMK’s Theni district secretary, testified as a witness in Kumar’s case.
Speaking to ThePrint Thursday, Tamilselvan known as the decision a “landmark judgment”.
“There was proof that Kumar had tried to bribe the voters in the course of the election campaigns, he had proven disrespect to the election officers, and the AIADMK members had violated the Election Fee guidelines and laws,” he stated.
Tamilselvan added that, even when Kumar appeals within the Supreme Court docket, he would face an analogous verdict.
“This can be a good verdict, however it could have been higher if it had come earlier and triggered a re-election within the constituency, which might have raised extra consciousness among the many individuals,” he informed ThePrint.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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