Election Officers Scramble to Rectify Nomination Error in Erode East Bypoll

The Election Commission replaced the Returning Officer for Erode East, leading to a mistake in nomination acceptance. Candidate Padmavathy, initially approved, was later disqualified for not meeting residency rules. The corrected list of 46 candidates was announced, with the bypoll set for February 5.

The Election Commission has taken corrective action by replacing N Manish with H S Srikanth as the Returning Officer for the Erode East Assembly Constituency, amid a nomination acceptance oversight.

Padmavathy, a candidate from Karnataka, was initially accepted but later disqualified due to non-compliance with residency requirements, following objections from other candidates and an inquiry by local election officials.

After correcting the error, the final list of 46 candidates, representing several parties and independents, was released, with the bypoll scheduled for February 5, following the death of previous legislator E V K S Elangovan.

(With inputs from agencies.)