Madras High Court allows Election Commission to inquire into AIADMK leadership dispute

By our Special Correspondent

The Madras High Court on Wednesday permitted the Election Commission of India (ECI) to find out if there were rival groups staking claim over the AIADMK, and decide which of those groups was actually entitled to be recognised as the political party.

Third Division Bench of Justices R. Subramanian and G. Arul Murugan held that the ECI could not be prevented from exercising its powers under paragraph 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order of 1968 just because a few civil suits were pending against certain resolutions passed by the party’s general council.