The RK Nagar by-election could be countermanded after gross violation of model code of conduct and corruption was discovered to be taking place before the April 12 by-poll. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) will be submitting its report to the Election Commission on Saturday regarding the 35 raids conducted by the Income Tax officials on state health minister C Vijayabaskar, his relatives and party officials in three Tamil Nadu districts, during which Rs 89 crore was found in his possession.
The RK Nagar constituency is sought after by all parties as it was held by late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. Whoever wins the poll will acquire boasting rights that they're the future of the state. Apart from the Sasikala-led AIADMK, the O Panneerselvam-led AIADMK, DMK, and Deepa Jayakumar are in the fray.
"Countermanding of an election in a constituency can be done only if there is more than one party involved in corrupt activities. But the latest happenings in Tamil Nadu show that the EC may think twice before holding the by-election," a former chief electoral officer told the Times of India.
A senior I-T official said that the search operations were completed on Saturday morning after which they prepared reports on the raids, the opposition faced by them and the AIADMK protests. They handed the report to CTBT.
Special electoral officer Vikram Batra rushed to Delhi after the CTBT submitted the report to EC.
To make the decision about cancelling the RK Nagar by-poll, the EC is waiting for Tamil Nadu chief electoral officer's report on the bribing of voters. TTV Dinakaran was seen in a video offering Rs 4,000 for voting for AIADMK.
"We will go by our CEO's report detailing the extent of cash seizures and money trail detected during I-T raids... We expect the report to be in as soon as possible," an EC official told the publication.
"There were many violations during the searches at the minister's residence. As per the I-T Act, no person can enter or leave the premises when the search is on. But he spoke to the media accusing us. We have included all these in the report," said the official.
"The official will be filing a criminal complaint against the minister and others who intimidated the woman IRS official," he said.
The party MLAs and others who were given the responsibility of ensuring votes for Dinakaran could also face more action in the future.
