EC says no bypolls in two Tamil Nadu assembly seats 'at this stage'

Election Commission on Tuesday decided not to hold assembly bypolls in two constituencies in Tamil Nadu, whose tenure of the current assembly ends in May next year.

Bypolls to Gudiyattam and Thiruvottriyur were necessitated after the legislators – both belonging to Opposition DMK- passed away within a gap of two days in February. The bypolls were postponed due to Covid-19 restrictions and the decision not to hold the polls “at this stage” comes after opinion from the Tamil Nadu government which was against holding polls now.

The current term of the Tamil Nadu assembly expires on May 24, 2021. “The Commission has decided not to announce the conduct of elections at this stage in the seven vacancies in legislative assemblies of the states of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal," a notification from the EC said.

The announcement comes as a reprieve to political parties in Tamil Nadu who are preparing for the 2021 Assembly polls.