Congress MLA A. John Kumar on Thursday resigned his Nellithope seat in the Assembly to enable Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy contest a by-election before the December deadline.
Mr. Kumar, accompanied by president of the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) A. Namassivayam who also holds the Public Works portfolio and other ministers, submitted his resignation to Speaker V. Vaithialingam.
Sources in the Speaker’s Office said the resignation had been accepted and duly notified in the gazette about the seat vacancy.
By-poll date
They said the Election Commission had to announce the date for the by-election.
The resignation had brought an end to several months of speculation regarding the constituency from where Mr. Narayanasamy would seek a mandate to formalise his assumption to the Office of the Chief Minister.
Shortly after submitting his resignation, Mr. Kumar told reporters that he took the decision to vacate the seat after informing the Congress high command.
“The Chief Minister is doing an excellent work. I am concerned about the welfare of the people and in the next five years the territory will change for the better. The constituency will develop further if it is represented by a Chief Minister.”
When asked about the charge that he had sold the seat for a hefty sum, he said “if anyone can produce proof I will part away with my entire property.” He termed the allegation as “baseless and motivated.” He also denied rumours that he would be offered the posts of nominated MLA and chairman of a board.
Mr. Kumar was the deputy chairman in the Puducherry Municipality during 2006-11 and had unsuccessfully contested the 2011 Assembly elections as a Congress candidate. In the last Assembly polls, he defeated AIADMK candidate Om Sakthi Sekar by a margin of around 12000 votes.
