The Madras High Court on Wednesday allowed the Election Commission of India to hold an inquiry into the disputes related to the AIADMK's two-leaves symbol and party leadership.
The high court lifted an earlier stay order based on individual petitions filed by AIADMK’s former members K.C. Palanisamy, Va Pugazhendhi, O. Panneerselvam’s son P Raveendranath, B. Ramkumar Adityan, P. Gandhi and M.G. Ramachandran.
A division bench comprising Justices R. Subramanian and G. Arul Murugan, however, instructed the ECI to strictly conduct the inquiry within the parameters of paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order of 1968.
Paragraph 15 of the symbols order pertains to disputes between rival groups in a political party. It says “When the Commission is satisfied on information in its possession that there are rival sections or groups of a recognised political party, each of whom claims to be that party, the Commission may, after taking into account all the available facts and circumstances of the case and hearing such representatives of the sections or groups and other persons as desire to be heard, decide that one such rival section or group or none of such rival sections or groups is the recognised political party and the decision of the Commission shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups.”
The court ordered that the ECI must first satisfy itself that a dispute existed between the rival groups and that it could proceed with further inquiry.
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The high court had on January 9 stayed the ECI proceedings with regard to the symbol and leadership dispute within the AIADMK based on a petition filed by its general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami. The former chief minister had requested the court to prevent the ECI from conducting the quasi-judicial proceedings into the party’s leadership dispute.
Later, a group of former AIADMK leaders approached the high court seeking an order to vacate the stay.
Though the fissures within the AIADMK had been legally settled and Palaniswami took charge as the general secretary of the party, the legal battle began again on February 12, 2024, when an individual named S. Surya Moorthi submitted a representation to the ECI.
Surya Moorthi demanded that the ECI freeze the ‘two leaves’ symbol as several civil suits were pending before the court and that the party leadership was under dispute. He also filed a writ petition in the court on February 14, 2024, seeking a direction to make the ECI consider his petition.
On December 4, 2024 the writ petition filed by Surya Moorthi was disposed of by a division bench of the Madras High Court comprising Justices Subramanian and C. Kumarappan. The writ was dismissed after the ECI said that it would finish the inquiry and dispose of the representation within four weeks.
After this, the ECI sent notices to the AIADMK leadership and six others who had filed separate petitions before the ECI in the same case. These six persons had been expelled from the party, after the death of former party chief Jayalalithaa. The ECI move prompted the AIADMK leadership to rush to the court seeking a stay on the proceedings.
