Tamilisai allowed to withdraw poll petition against Kanimozhi

Justice S M Subramaniam before whom the plea came up for hearing on Monday, allowed the withdrawal after recording the submission by her counsel that issue has already been intimated in the Government Gazette. However, the judge directed Tamilisai Soundararajan to cause a publication to this effect in both English and Tamil dailies to elicit any public objection in this regard and posted the plea to November 11.

Meanwhile, in another plea moved by A Santhana Kumar, a voter, challenging Kanimozhi’s victory, Justice Subramaniam posted the case for further hearing to October 30 after directing the respective parties to file their replies. Kanimozhi in response to the charge raised by Santhana Kumar has submitted that the averments contained in the Election Petition are wholly vague and bereft of material facts. Noting that the election petition is not supported by a ‘corrupt practice affidavit’ as mandated by Rule 94-A of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, she submitted that Santhana Kumar has merely stated that I have suppressed my spouse’s PAN number and income tax return filed for the past five financial years in Form 26. But he has neither stated any material fact about why the acceptance of my nomination was improper nor has substantiated why it amounts to either non-compliance with Constitutional provisions or how the result of the election is materially affected, Kanimozhi said.

She further submitted that the petitioner has neither claimed that my spouse has a PAN nor that he holds any such similar PAN numbers in Singapore. He has simply claimed that I have failed to mention the Income Tax details of my spouse while I have clearly mentioned that my spouse does not have a PAN number and if the petitioner contends that this statement is wrong, he ought to substantiate the allegation that the statement is incorrect, she said. Without these averments, the bland and vague statement that I have not provided my spouse’s PAN number cannot be maintained in an election petition, Kanimozhi added.