Vaiko, Velu appear before EC, request review of notice

MDMK general secretary Vaiko and PMK functionary and former Union Minister of State for Railways R. Velu on Wednesday appeared before the Election Commission and requested it to reconsider its decision to derecognise their parties in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in view of the poor show in the elections.

Janata Dal (United) general secretary Javed Raza too appeared before the full Commission — Chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla and Election Commissioners S.Y. Quraishi and V.S. Sampath — and wanted it to withdraw its notice regarding derecognition of the party in Jharkhand.

The PMK, which is a recognised State party in Tamil Nadu, will continue to have recognition there and the notice only relates to the party's performance in Puducherry.

However, representatives of the Trinamool Congress, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, the Arunachal Congress and the Samajwadi Party did not turn up, though they too had been asked to come for a personal hearing.

Sources said the contention of Mr. Vaiko was that his party was facing derecognition just for a shortage of 0.02 per cent votes as it got 5.98 per cent of the total votes polled; the EC rules stipulate that a party should get 6 per cent of the total votes polled in the election to the Assembly or the Lok Sabha. Mr. Vaiko hoped the EC would take 5.98 per cent as 6 per cent and spare his party from derecognition.

Mr. Velu pointed out that in Puducherry there were only 30 Assembly seats and the party got two seats. Hence the Commission could take a lenient view and allow its recognition in the Union Territory.

Conditions

Among the EC's conditions for recognition is that the total number of valid votes polled by all the candidates of a party in the last Lok Sabha or Assembly elections should not be less than 6 per cent of the total votes polled.

Sources added that since Mr. Chawla will demit office on July 29, the orders on all the parties on the issue will be issued in the next few days.

It is learnt the Commission wants to be strict in implementing the rules and the parties are unlikely to get any relief or relaxation in the provisions.