A vacation bench of the Madras High Court, consisting of Justices G R Swaminathan and V Lakshminarayan, has issued notices to the Election Commission of India, the Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu, TVK president Joseph Vijay, DMK president M K Stalin and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami. The action follows a public interest petition filed by advocate L Vasuki from Cuddalore.
The petition claims that during an April 2026 campaign event at YMCA Grounds in Chennai, Vijay urged children to influence their parents and others to support TVK candidates. The remarks reportedly spread widely online and in media, prompting debate about the involvement of minors in electoral activities.
The petitioner cited Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, arguing that such actions could amount to undue influence. The bench questioned whether a political party could face disqualification under Section 100 and scheduled the next hearing for May 29. It also referenced past Election Commission guidelines from 2009, 2013 and 2014 that discouraged the participation of children in campaign events.
Additional allegations in the petition include claims of cash-for-votes across constituencies in the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections and a lack of effective inquiry by election authorities, which the petitioner said violated constitutional provisions on equality and fair elections.
