Candidates for the Vellore constituency have raised objections over DMK member D.M. Kathir Anand’s candidature.
In the aftermath of cash seizures from his partymen owing allegiance to his father and party treasurer Durai Murugan, they said that the Election Commission should disqualify him from the election.
Income Tax officials raided Mr. Durai Murugan’s house and a college run by Mr. Kathir on March 29 and unearthed unaccounted cash. Subsequently the I-T officials raided six places and seized ₹11.48 crore from a cement godown in Pallikuppam in the Katpadi region. Naam Tamizhar Katchi candidate S. Deepa Lakshmi sent a memorandum to the Chief Election Commissioner, Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu in Chennai and handed over a copy of it to District Election Officer at Vellore. “I request you to disqualify the contender Kathir Anand from this election and the elections should be conducted on April 18 as scheduled,” she wrote in the letter. The cancellation or postponement would pave the way for the contender to buy votes once gain, she added.
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‘Disqualify’
Instead, he should be disqualified and the election process should go ahead as planned, she reiterated. Another candidate (Independent) M.K. Kathiravan submitted a memorandum to the District Collector calling for appropriate action against Mr. Anand. Cancellation of elections would in no way help the voters and other contenders, he said.