LS polls: Nomination of over 900 candidates accepted in TN

The nomination of over 900 candidates for the April 18 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu have been accepted, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Satyabrata Sahoo said Thursday.

Karur, where senior AIADMK leader and Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai is facing Congress candidate S Jothimani, has the highest number of accepted nominations at 43, Sahoo said.

Further, over Rs 50 crore in cash and gold and silver jewels valued around Rs 69 crore have been seized since the model code of conduct (MCC) came into force, he said.

"A total of 1,587 nominations were filed for the (39) Parliamentary constituencies.. 655 of them were rejected following scrutiny and 932 were found to be valid," Sahoo told reporters here.

While Karur has the maximum valid nominations at 43 it was the lowest in the Nilgiris reserved constituency at 10.

Elections to 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu are scheduled in a single phase polling on April 18.

The AIADMK-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA), Kamal Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) and Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam floated by T T V Dhinakaran are the main contenders.

Sahoo further said that cash Rs 50.70 crore and 223 kg of gold and silver, valued around Rs 69 crore, have been seized so far by officials.

To a question on the allocation of symbol to AMMK, he said the Election Commission of India will decide on the matter since it has been given directions by the Supreme Court in this connection.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court had refused to acknowledge the claim of the AMMK over 'pressure cooker' as a common election symbol.

The apex court, however, had directed the EC to consider granting common free election symbol to the AMMK candidates for the April 18 polls and assembly by-elections in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Dhinakaran had won the December 2017 RK Nagar by-poll, necessitated by the death of then sitting MLA and late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, on the 'pressure cooker' symbol.

On the by-polls to 18 Assembly seats, Sahoo said a total of 518 nominations have been received, with 213 of them being rejected, leaving 305 candidates in the fray.

The by-polls are also scheduled on April 18.