Madras HC Bars TVK MLA from TN Confidence Vote

The Madras High Court in Chennai on Tuesday issued an interim order restraining TVK legislator R. Srinivasa Sethupathi from participating in the confidence vote scheduled for Wednesday in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. The ruling came on a petition by K.R. Periyakaruppan, a former DMK minister who lost to Sethupathi by one vote in the Tirupattur assembly constituency in Sivaganga district during the April 23 elections.

Sethupathi received 83,365 votes, while Periyakaruppan got 83,364, according to official results following a recount. Periyakaruppan alleged that a postal ballot intended for Tirupattur constituency number 185 in Sivaganga district was mistakenly sent to Tirupattur constituency number 50 in another district and rejected instead of being redirected. He claimed the Election Commission failed to act on his complaint and sought a recount along with an order barring Sethupathi from taking oath as a member of the legislative assembly or voting.

A vacation bench of Justices L. Victoria Gowri and N. Senthilkumar, which held special sittings on Sunday and Monday, found a prima facie case in Periyakaruppan's favor. The court directed authorities to preserve all postal...