Madras high court dismisses fresh plea over Vijay's election affidavit disclosures

CHENNAI: Madras high court on Monday dismissed a new public interest writ petition, seeking an income tax and the ECI probe into the alleged discrepancies in the financial declaration of actor and TVK founder Vijay in his election affidavit filed for the 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly election.

Refusing to entertain the plea, the first bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan dismissed the plea filed by M P Venkatesh, a voter from Perambur constituency. The bench already issued notice to the authorities on another plea seeking similar relief against Vijay.

According to the petitioner, Vijay declared in his election affidavit that he lent Rs 12.5 crore as a loan to his spouse, Sangeetha. This assumed greater significance considering widely reported developments concerning a matrimonial dispute between the couple, thereby raising legitimate questions about the genuineness, purpose and characterisation of such transactions.

While claiming to have extended massive loans running into several crores, Vijay simultaneously declared zero liabilities and no outstanding dues, thereby projecting an artificially sanitised and misleading financial profile. Such contradictory disclosures, including large transfers such as Rs 20 crore to Kokilambal Educational Trust, are neither properly explained nor truthfully presented, he said.

“A bare and meaningful reading of the affidavit discloses a disturbing and consistent pattern of suppression, misrepresentation and financial obfuscation. These are not clerical errors but serious irregularities that vitiate the entire disclosure regime,” he added.

The present petition is therefore necessitated to uphold the sanctity of the Constitution, preserve the purity of elections and prevent the subversion of democratic processes through false and misleading disclosures by candidates seeking public office, he said.