The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Ministers barred from coupling official tour with election work

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jun 01, 2007
ePaper

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Ministers barred from coupling official tour with election work

Special Correspondent

They should not halt in Madurai district or attend to political work, says EC

CHENNAI: With the Model Code of Conduct coming into effect on May 25 and the Election Commission announcing the schedule for the June 26 Madurai (West) Assembly by-election, Central and State Ministers have been asked not to combine official tours with election work.

The Commission has stipulated that Ministers should return to their headquarters on completion of official tour.

In a release here on Thursday, the Chief Electoral Officer said all visits by Ministers to Madurai district had to be private in nature and should begin and end at their headquarters.

Even during transit visit on official work en route to other districts, the Ministers should not halt in Madurai district or attend to political work.

Officials cautioned

Minister should not summon officials of any rank in Madurai district for any meeting.

Any official who meets Ministers on their private visit to the Madurai (West) constituency would be guilty of misconduct under the relevant service rule.

If they happened to be an official mentioned in Section 129 (1) of the Representation of People Act, 1951, they would be additionally considered to have violated statutory provisions of that Section and liable to penal action.

No pilot cars

Even if the State administration had granted the Ministers concerned a security cover requiring presence of armed guards accompanying them on tour, no pilot cars with beacon lights of any colour or cars fitted with sirens of any kind, making their presence conspicuous, should be used by them during their private visits to the constituency.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu