Madras High Court Admits Election Petitions Against CM Vijay on July 12

The Madras High Court has admitted two election petitions challenging Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s 2026 Assembly election victories from Perambur and Tiruchi East constituencies. DMK candidates R.D. Shekar and S. Inigo Irudayaraj allege Vijay used children in campaign activities, violated election spending limits, and made contradictory affidavits. Justice V. Lakshminarayanan ordered notices to Vijay on July 7 and posted the next hearing after three weeks.

What the petitioners are alleging

The two defeated DMK candidates claim Vijay emotionally targeted children during his April 21, 2026 campaign speech at YMCA grounds in Chennai, asking them to persuade their families to vote for his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam party. They submitted a DVD of the speech as evidence. The petitioners also allege children were made to wear TVK mufflers and hold campaign pamphlets, posters, and handbills. They cited this as emotionally blackmailing vulnerable minds, violating the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the Constitution.

Other grounds for challenging the election

Beyond the children issue, Shekar and Irudayaraj flagged discrepancies in Vijay’s election documents. His Form 26 affidavits for Trichy and Perambur contained two contradictory notarial attestations, as if he appeared before both notaries on the same day. The petitioners also cited non-disclosure of income tax dues, unaccounted social media spending, and campaigning inside a church and temple, all alleged corrupt practices. Vijay won Perambur by 53,715 votes, securing 1,20,365 votes to Shekar’s 66,650.

Election Commission directive cited

The petitioners invoked the Election Commission of India’s February 5, 2024 directive explicitly banning the use of children in election campaigns and rallies. They argued Vijay’s systemic involvement of children in his campaign violated this directive and warranted nullification of his victory. The court is now examining whether these allegations meet the threshold for setting aside the election results.

Bye-elections halted pending court decision

On July 10 and 11, the Madras High Court restrained the Election Commission from notifying bye-elections to five vacant Tamil Nadu Assembly seats until July 31. The Division Bench noted that if the court later declares another candidate validly elected after bye-elections were held, two individuals could claim the right to represent the same constituency. Vijay resigned from Tiruchi East after retaining Perambur; four AIADMK MLAs also resigned after joining TVK, creating the vacancies.

Final Thoughts

The court’s admission of both petitions and the bye-election freeze signal serious scrutiny of Vijay’s 2026 campaign conduct. The next hearing in three weeks will determine whether the allegations of child involvement and election law violations have merit enough to overturn his victories.

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