2 weeks ago
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Tamil Nadu’s ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) enactment MLA R. Sreenivasa Sethupathi moved the Supreme Court connected Tuesday (May 12, 2026), within hours of the Madras High Court restricting him from participating successful a spot ballot connected May 13.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant agreed to database the entreaty connected May 13 pursuing an oral mentioning made by elder advocator A.M. Singhvi and advocator Yash S. Vijay, representing the Tirupattur MLA, for an urgent hearing.
A Vacation Bench of the High Court headed by Justice L. Victoria Gowri had restrained Mr. Sethupathi from voting successful the assurance question successful the 17th Legislative Assembly, scheduled to instrumentality spot connected the level of the House successful little than the adjacent 24 hours.
The High Court bid was based connected a petition filed by rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) campaigner K.R. Periakaruppan, who mislaid the constituency to Mr. Sethupathi by the borderline of a azygous ballot successful the April 23 elections.
While Mr. Periakaruppan, a erstwhile State Minister, secured 83,364 votes, Mr. Sethupathi got 1 much ballot to decorativeness the tally astatine 83,365.
The Madras High Court bid leaves the newly-formed C. Joseph Vijay-led authorities with a razor-thin bulk successful the Assembly. After days of delay, Governor Rajendra Arlekar had yet invited Mr. Vijay to signifier the authorities erstwhile helium could amusement enactment from 120 MLAs, conscionable 2 much than the 118-majority mark.
Though the High Court clarified that its interim bid would not magnitude to mounting speech the predetermination triumph of Mr. Sethupathi, the judicial intervention, that excessively connected the eve of the assurance motion, has reduced the fig of MLAs supporting TVK to 119, precariously 1 much than the bulk threshold successful the 234-seat Assembly.
Mr. Periakaruppan has filed a caveat successful Mr. Sethupathi’s entreaty successful the apex tribunal successful bid to guarantee that helium would beryllium heard earlier the apex tribunal passed immoderate orders connected May 13.
The DMK person had submitted that the counting process successful the constituency was redolent with discrepancies successful the physics voting instrumentality statistic and handling of postal ballots. He had argued that determination was a mix-up successful counting a postal ballot, which was formed successful his favour, due to the fact that it was sent to the incorrect constituency.
