Madras High Court Issues Notice On PIL Alleging Electoral Corruption During TN Polls, Use Of Children By TVK To Influence Voters
Upasana Sajeev
21 May 2026 12:47 PM IST
The Madras High Court has sought response on a public interest litigation alleging corrupt practices by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party and the All India Anna Dravida Kazhagam (AIADMK) party during the 2026 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly elections.
The bench of Justice GR Swaminathan and Justice V Lakshminarayanan orally observed that while an election petition would be maintainable when a petition is filed against a particular candidate, in the present case, the allegations had been made against the political party itself.
Noting that the matter requires some investigation, the court issued notice to the Election Commission and the parties.
“Election petition is maintainable against the candidate. But can a party be disqualified under Section 100 (of RP Act). Matter requires some investigation,” the court orally remarked.
The plea has been filed by an Advocate L Vasuki. In her plea, Vasuki alleged that during the assembly elections, there were various illegal activities including electoral bribery, cash-for-votes, undue influence on voters and alleged use of minor children for electoral propaganda and indirect voter influence.
The petitioner alleged that during the election campaign, CM Joseph Vijay, who is also the president of TVK party, had called upon children to emotionally influence or pressure their parents to vote for TVK. It was argued that the said act raises serious concern relating to undue influence under Section 123 of the RP Act.
The petitioner also pointed out that there were serious allegations relating to distribution of money to voters and cash-for-votes emerging in various constituencies. It was also argued that no action had been taken by the Election Commission of India, though the complaints were widely circulated. The petitioner argued that this inaction by the ECI affected free and fair elections, thus violating Article 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution and strikes at the basic structure doctrine.
Thus, the petitioner had sought for an inquiry by – to conduct a time-bound independent inquiry into the allegations of corrupt practices committed by the three prominent parties within a time frame fixed by the court.
Case Title: Vasuki L v Election Commission of India
Case No: WP 20247 of 2026
