Farmers union files petition in High Court seeking postponement of Tiruvarur bypoll

When a division bench comprising Justice M Sathyanarayanan and Justice M Rajamanickam commenced its sitting on Wednesday, Advocate N G R Prasad made a mention about the issue and sought for an urgent hearing of the case. While the bench refused to take up the plea and sought them to file it as a formal petition and that it would be taken up as and when it is listed.

However, Prasad appearing for Kaveri Delta Farmers Union, which had contended that holding the by-election even as the relief work undertaken owing to the disaster caused by Gaja Cyclone is halfway through and hence is bound to lead to confusion with the model code of conduct coming into vogue, said the notification is scheduled to be issued on January 3 and hence the plea ought to be heard ahead of it.

Following the rejection, another mention was made before the Chief Justice V K Tahilramani, who while ruling out an urgent hearing asked them to file the plea so that it can be listed for hearing on January 03. Accordingly, the plea is set to come up before the division bench led Justice Sathyanarayana.

The public interest litigation had contended that once the gazette notification is issued on January 3, the model code of conduct will come into force resulting in ECI taking control of the situation. There will be many restrictions and hence the people in Tiruvarur will be unable to get the benefit of the ongoing relief work and celebrate Pongal festival in a free manner, the plea said.

It further noted that there was every possibility of the contesting candidates and their agents use the situation for distributing freebies under the guise of Pongal gifts. There was every scope of malpractice resulting in the election not being held in a free and fair manner and hence should be postponed beyond Pongal festival, the plea added.

The PIL also sought to restrain the ECI from issuing Gazette notification of the schedule, as stated in a press note.