ECI not to conduct bypolls to five constituencies in Tamil Nadu until disposal of election petitions, Madras High Court told

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has informed the Madras High Court that it does not plan to conduct bye-elections in Tiruchi East, Perundurai, Ambasamudram, Viralimalai, and Karur Assembly constituencies until the resolution of election petitions related to these five constituencies. This decision was made in response to a public interest litigation petition filed by K. Venkatachalapathy, who appeared in court through his counsel, V.R.

Shanmuganathan. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Tamil Nadu, Archana Patnaik, explained the rationale behind the decision, citing the Supreme Court's ruling in Sanjeevayya versus The Election Tribunal, Andhra Pradesh (1967), which stated that the ECI is not obligated to hold a bye-election if an election petitioner declares themselves as the returned candidate.

The Supreme Court also clarified in 1996 that Section 151-A of the Representation of the People Act of 1951, which mandates a six-month timeline for bye-elections, should be interpreted harmoniously with Section 84 of the same act. As a result, the ECI stated that a constituency with a pending election petition under Section 84 is not eligible for a bye-election following the occurrence of a casual vacancy.

The CEO also informed the court that the five candidates who won the aforementioned constituencies in May 2026 have since resigned. Despite this, since election petitions have been filed and petitioners have declared themselves as returned candidates, the ECI does not intend to hold bye-elections in these constituencies. The Chief Justice's Bench adjourned the writ petition until September 8, 2026, and extended an interim order, passed on July 10, 2026, restraining the ECI from notifying bypolls for the five constituencies.