CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and DMDK general secretary Premalatha Vijayakant on Saturday announced that the parties would boycott the Erode East bypoll, scheduled for Feb 5.
NTK chief coordinator Seeman said the party would contest. The candidate would be made known on Jan 14, he said.
Palaniswami’s announcement followed a meeting of district secretaries at the AIADMK headquarters. He cited concerns about the ruling DMK party’s alleged misuse of power, violence and voter intimidation as the reason for the boycott.
“As they will not let the people cast their votes freely, and the bypoll will not be held freely, the AIADMK boycotts the bypoll,” the former chief minister said. This decision comes less than six months after the party boycotted the Vikravandi bypoll.
Palaniswami accused the DMK of distributing cash and gifts to voters during the previous Erode East bypoll. He alleged that voters had been threatened with the loss of govt welfare schemes if they had not remained in an area throughout the day as directed by the ruling party.
“It’s heartbreaking to see people were treated like refugees in their own land, fearing the threat of not being given old age pension and other welfare schemes of the govt,” he said.
Palaniswami criticised the DMK for “undermining democracy through the use of power and resorting to violence, forgetting the greatness of democracy.”
In a statement, Premalatha said the DMK had secured victory in the last Erode East byelection through anti-democratic ways. The upcoming byelection would also be held in a similar pattern, she said.
