Court withdraws case filed by pollsters over election period

Madras High Court asks poll body about status of cases it has filed (File)

chennai:

In a major development, the Madras High Court directed the Election Commission (EC) to provide details of cases filed during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and the 2021 Tamil Nadu elections.

The court expressed concern over the seemingly superficial nature of the cases registered, noting that they appeared to be used solely for statistical purposes with little prosecution.

This was in response to a petitioner who was accused of bribing voters in 2011 and who sought to have the case dismissed because the final report was not submitted until a decade later.

The poll body has so far confiscated a staggering Rs 4,650 crore ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. This is at least Rs 1,000 crore more than the amount seized before the 2019 polls.

The court also requested information about convictions and the current status of the case.

Besides directing the Election Commission, the court also called on the Tamil Nadu Election Commission to clarify the follow-up procedure in such cases.