The DMK and the AIADMK traded charges over the recent cash seizure in Vellore in separate representations addressed to the Chief Election Commissioner during a meeting with Election Commission officials in Chennai on Wednesday.

Election Commissioners Ashok Lavasa and Sushil Chandra held a meeting with representatives of recognised national and State political parties before meeting officials involved in election work.

The DMK, in a representation submitted by Organisation Secretary R.S. Bharathi, alleged that central agencies like the Income Tax Department were being abused and misused to target and harass candidates belonging to the DMK and allied parties to help the candidates of the BJP and the AIADMK.

Referring to the raid on DMK treasurer Duraimurugan’s house in Vellore, the party said his son, Kathir Anand, the DMK candidate for the constituency, was detained for three days though it was illegal to detain anyone during a search action under Section 132 of the IT Act, 1961.

“We make it clear that we are not against the lawful exercise of their [the authorities’] statutory powers, but the manner in which the searches are conducted in blatant violation of the IT Act, Rules and Manual shows that the searches are a colourable exercise of power and politically motivated,” the party said. “Interestingly, huge [amount of] cash is said to have been found in places belonging to Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami’s associates, including those of associates of Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and all sitting AIADMK Ministers, district secretaries and MLAs, and yet the I-T [Department] remains a silent spectator, despite having received information in this regard,” the DMK alleged in its letter. The party sought the EC’s intervention to raise the issue with the Income Tax Department and direct the latter to be impartial, unbiased and act in accordance with the law during the election process.

The AIADMK, in its letter, sought the constitution of a special committee to “look into the poll malpractices of DMK treasurer Duraimurugan and his son Kathir Anand and to freeze all banks accounts and bank lockers of the two as well as those of the functionaries of the DMK in Vellore who were involved in this episode”.

Code violation alleged

The letter, submitted by Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar, also alleged that the DMK and its allies, as well as the AMMK led by T.T.V. Dhinakaran, had violated the Model Code of Conduct “by and large”. The ruling party also alleged that the DMK and AMMK candidates who had filed nominations in the Perambur Assembly constituency and the Tirunelveli Parliamentary constituency did not give any reply or answer the serial number 6 – A in the Form 26 Affidavit. Despite representations to the ROs to reject these nominations for leaving a column blank, the ROs had given their own interpretations and accepted the defective nominations, it alleged.

The party requested the EC to provide transportation facilities through a special drive to slum-dwellers from three Parliamentary constituencies in Chennai, who were resettled 30-35 km away from their original location, to enable them to vote.

The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee sought the conduct of bypolls to four remaining constituencies immediately. It alleged that officials, in cahoots with the Election Commission, were threatening Opposition candidates. The party’s representative, Karate R. Thiagarajan, complained to the EC officials that the Chief Electoral Officer could not be reached when the party wanted to raise complaints. “I have called him more than 100 times, but he never picks our calls,” he told the Commission. He alleged that the cash found during searches in Vellore, videos of which were doing the rounds, belonged to the AIADMK, and the notings on the cash packets showed that the targeted areas belonged to Coimbatore and not Vellore.