Chennai: The Madras High Court on Friday directed the Tamilnadu State Election Commission (TNSEC) to respond to a plea made by the principal Opposition AIADMK on the 6 and 9 October rural local body elections in nine new districts.
The AIADMK has sought deployment of government staff from other States or from Central services as observers for the local body polls to be held in Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, Tenkasi, Kallakurichi, Ranipet, Vellore, Tiruppathur, Villupuram and Tirunelveli districts on 6 and 9 October.
The First Bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P D Audikesavalu directed the TNSEC to respond to the requests of the AIADMK regarding posting of Central and State Observers, deployment of Central Security Forces, and for the electronic surveillance of the poll process for ensuring free and fair elections to the rural local bodies.
The court, while admitting a petition filed on 14 September by the AIADMK’s election wing deputy secretary IS Inbadurai, directed the State Election Commission (SEC) to respond to the petition within one week.
‘The SEC must respond to the petition by the Principal Opposition party, AIADMK by 29 September’, the Bench said.
Appearing on behalf of the AIADMK, senior counsel Vijay Narayan said the party also wanted deployment of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel during the poll process.
He said another important demand was to install CCTV cameras during polling, at the strong rooms as well as during the counting of votes so that any complaint regarding malpractices could be addressed appropriately.
He said though the AIADMK had made a representation in this regard, the TNSEC was yet to respond.
After the TNSEC submitted that the issues highlighted by the petitioner party had already been considered and appropriate measures had been put in place to ensure free and fair polls, the judges also accepted a request made by Narayan to list the writ petition once again on 30 September so that further orders, if necessary, could be passed on that day for free and fair conduct of the local body polls.