CHENNAI: The Election Commission on Saturday recovered Rs nine lakh from Samathuva Makkal Katchi leader R Sarath Kumar’s car at Nallur Vilakku in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruchendur.
Kumar was in the vehicle when the cash was seized. This is the first instance of cash being seized from a candidate’s vehicle in this election.
Kumar is the lone candidate of his party and is contesting on AIADMK’s two-leaves symbol. “A flying squad led by special tahsildar P Vallikannu made the seizure while on a routine vehicle check. The money has been deposited in the treasury,” said an official.
The EC confirmed the seizure from the actor-politician’s vehicle, but repeated attempts to contact Kumar failed. “Election officials have seized more than Rs 80 crore since the model code of conduct came into effect on March,” said the official.