Lok Sabha Elections 2024: The Election Commission issued a directive on Tuesday, instructing the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to verify any 'mismatch' in the affidavit details provided by Union Minister and BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who is contesting from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat, sources said.
The poll panel move came a day after the Congress lodged a complaint with the Election Commission, claiming a mismatch in actual and declared assets in the affidavit filed by Chandrasekhar, who is in the fray against former UN diplomat Shashi Tharoor.
What is the law?
As per procedure, the poll panel has directed CBDT to check the affidavit and verify the mismatch if any in the affidavit details submitted by Chandrasekhar. According to the rule any mismatch and falsification of the affidavit is dealt with under Section 125 A of the RP Act 1951, the sources added.
As per the law, concealing any information in nomination papers or affidavits is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with a fine, or both.
Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha Election 2024
Thiruvananthapuram is one of the Lok Sabha constituencies in Kerala. The Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) are the main parties in the constituency. Thiruvananthapuram has traditionally been a stronghold for the Congress party, with Shashi Tharoor representing the constituency for the past three terms. Tharoor secured victories in the 2009, 2014, and 2019 Lok Sabha elections, establishing a significant presence for the Congress in the region. Congress leader A Charles won the seat thrice in a row in 1984, 1989 and 1991 when it was known as the Trivandrum constituency.
The constituency is set to witness a key contest in Thiruvananthapuram between Congress MP and former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, BJP's Rajeev Chandrasekhar and CPI's Pannyan Raveendran.
In the 2019 elections, Shashi Tharoor contested against BJP's Kummanam Rajasekharan. He defeated Rajasekharan by a margin of 99,989 votes. Tharoor bagged 41.19 per cent vote share while the BJP candidate got 31.30 per cent votes. C Divakaran of the CPI received 2,58,556 votes and 25.60 per cent vote share.
(With PTI inputs)
