Tahsildar entry into store room: EC transfers Madurai collector

Chennai: Even as the Election Commission of India has informed the Madras High court that Madurai District Collector/District Election Officer Dr S Natarajan and Assistant Returning Officer, Madurai West Assembly segment M Guru Chandran have been transferred with immediate effect, the court directed ECI to initiate disciplinary or prosecution action against PA (General), of the Collector and Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) for allowing the tahsildar Samboornam to enter into store rooms and take documents from the room after the April 18 polls .

Passing an interim order on a petition from Su. Venkatesan, the CPI(M) candidate who contested in the Madurai Parliamentary constituency the Division Bench comprising Justice S. Manikumar and Justice Subramonium Prasad said PA(General), of the Collector who has ignited the incident in the Madurai Parliamentary Constituency, which caused breach of secrecy and security as per the provisions of Election laws and the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime), who was in charge of the election duty and the police men who allowed tahsildar Samboornam and P.Suryaprakash, assistant in Madurai corporation, P. Raja Prakash, junior assistant in Madurai Corporation and N.Sivaraman, record clerk in the office of the Assistant Commissioner of Excise, Madurai, and others to enter into the store rooms, take documents from the store rooms recently.

 Venkatesan sought a direction from the court to  ECI to constitute a special investigation team headed by an officer not below the rank of Principal Secretary, ECI, on the illegal act of Mrs Samboornam, tahasildar, now under suspension on her illegal entry into the counting centre at Madurai Medical College where the documents pertaining to Madurai parliamentary constituency elections are kept.

When the matter came up for hearing on Saturday, ECI produced a letter dated April 27, 2019, of the secretary, ECI in which it was stated that S. Nagarajan, will replace S. Natarajan, the DEO and Shantha Kumar as Assistant Returning Officer in the place of Guru Chandran with immediate effect.

When Niranjnan Rajagopalan counsel for ECI submitted that disciplinary action would be initiated against the erring returning officer and assistant returning officer, the bench asked the counsel of ECI whether the ECI or the CEO, Tamil Nadu are powerless to initiate disciplinary action. Bench said there is absolutely no action against PA(General) of the Collector who has ignited the incident which caused breach of secrecy and security as per the provisions of the Election Laws and instructions issued. There is no action against the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) in charge of the election duty, the police men who allowed Samboornam (Tahsildar) and others to enter into the store room remained there for 3 hours and took documents etc. No prosecution and departmental action has been taken against them.

The bench said therefore without going into the controversy, as to who is empowered to initiate disciplinary action or prosecution, against the erring officials, as the case may be, we direct the ECI, New Delhi to initiate disciplinary action or prosecution against the PA(General) to the District Collector, Madurai District and initiate action against others, who were involved and pointed out by the Enquiry Officer. The bench then directed registry to post the matter for further hearing to April 30.