HC seeks EC response on PIL over deletion of voter names under Kanyakumari LS seat

The Madras High Court Wednesday issued notice to the Election Commission on a plea which sought a probe into deletion of names of about 45,000 voters under Kanyakumari Lok Sabha constituency where polling was held on April 18.

A vacation bench of Justice S Vaidyanathan and Justice Subramonium Prasad issued the notice seeking a status report on the issue, returnable by June 12.

The PIL was filed by A Rajkumar, the district coordinator of a fishermen association at Agastheeswaram Mayiladi in the district.

Counsel for the petitioner argued that people, whose names were found deleted this time, had voted in the 2016 assembly elections.

The deletion of 45,000 names was violative of the fundamental rights, the counsel said and sought a direction from the court to constitute a committee to probe the matter.

"Authorities have not followed due process of law before deleting the names," the petitioner said and sought to restrain them from counting votes on May 23.

He also sought repoll in booths where voters' names were deleted in large numbers.

In the Kanyakumari Lok Sabha constituency, Union minister and BJP candidate Pon Radhakrishnan was pitted against Congress' H Vasanthakumar.