Erode east bypoll: Woman's nomination rejected in midnight

Erode: Nomination of a woman independent candidate of the Erode east assembly bypoll was rejected in the intervening night between Monday and Tuesday, hours after list of candidates were finalised, officials said.

As time for withdrawal of nominations was over by 3 pm on Monday, 47 candidates were in the fray for the bypoll, officials had said. However after 5 pm two independent candidates Azhwar and Noor Mohammed challenged the candidacy of another independent candidate.

They approached the Returning Officer (RO) N.Manish with a complaint stating that independent candidate in the fray Padmavathy has her name in the Karnataka voters list and hence her nomination should be rejected, sources said.

They also said Padmavathy's name is in the voters list of K.R.Puram in Karnataka and as per election rules only the residents of Tamil Nadu could contest assembly election in the state. The RO and other election officials verified the facts and and conveyed the details to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Tamil Nadu. Based on the directions from the CEO, the Returning Officer rejected the nomination of Padmavathy.

Hence the final number of candidates contesting Erode east bypoll is 46, officials confirmed.