TVK chief Vijay under lens again after conflicting poll affidavits

Actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief Vijay is once again under legal scrutiny after discrepancies were identified in the two election affidavits submitted ahead of the Assembly elections.

The contrasting documents, prepared for the Perambur and Tiruchirappalli East constituencies, revealed contradictory declarations regarding his pending criminal cases and designated election bank accounts.

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Vijay filed his affidavit for Perambur Assembly constituency on March 30 and for the Tiruchirappalli East seat on April 2.

Contrasting declarations

The affidavit prepared for the Perambur constituency explicitly claims that the actor-politician has no pending criminal cases against him. Meanwhile, the affidavit filed in Tiruchirapalli declares two pending First Information Reports (FIRs).

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According to the Tiruchirapalli document, the disclosed cases include an FIR registered at the Koodakovil Police Station in Madurai district and another at the Peravallur Police Station in Chennai. The latter involves allegations of public nuisance and injuries caused by bouncers during a recent campaign event.

In addition to the criminal record discrepancy, the financial declarations related to election expenditure also differ.

Discrepancy in the financial status

The Perambur document lists a single bank account opened for election expenses at the Indian Overseas Bank, Saligramam branch, containing a deposit of Rs 1 lakh. The Trichy affidavit, however, lists two separate accounts, maintaining the Saligramam account for Perambur and adding another account at the Indian Overseas Bank Tiruchirappalli Main branch with a balance of Rs 90,000.

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Legal experts suggest that the suppression or misrepresentation of facts in a sworn election affidavit is a serious violation under the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

Under Section 125A of the Act, failing to furnish information, concealing details, or providing false information can attract a penalty of imprisonment for up to six months, a fine, or both. In this case, rival candidates could raise immediate objections based on the concealment of the FIRs in the Perambur document, according to the experts.

There was no immediate response from TVK over the matter.