The Madras High Court has turned down a request to challenge the election of Dayanidhi Maran, the DMK candidate from Chennai Central, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Judge N Anand Venkatesh dismissed the case filed by M L Ravi, an advocate who also ran for the same seat.
The judge agreed with Maran’s application to remove parts of Ravi’s petition. He explained that there was nothing solid in Ravi’s claims about how Maran spent money on stickers placed on houses. The judge said Ravi’s estimates were too vague, and there was no real proof that the stickers were linked to Maran.
Next, the judge looked at claims about Maran covering food costs for election workers. Ravi’s allegations lacked details and sounded more like guesses. The judge noted that these workers were mostly party supporters who might have brought their own food and drinks.
Finally, Ravi pointed to a rally that took place on April 14 and 15, 2024, claiming it wasn’t recorded properly in Maran’s expenses. However, the judge stated that the videos didn’t clearly show Maran was involved in the rally. Therefore, the court decided that Ravi’s claims about Maran’s spending were mostly based on assumptions rather than facts. This meant there was no real reason to suspect fraud, so the case was dismissed.
