Madras HC Declares Appavu Elected MLA in 2016 Radhapuram Seat After 9-Year Legal Battle [Read Order]

The Madras High Court has declared Mr. M. Appavu as the duly elected Member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from No. 228, Radhapuram Assembly Constituency, Tirunelveli District, for the term 2016 to 2021, setting aside the return of the sitting candidate more than nine years after the election was held.

The order was passed on June 3, 2026 by Dr. Justice G. Jayachandran, bringing to a close an election petition that had been filed in 2016 and had remained entangled in protracted litigation before both the High Court and the Supreme Court.

Mr. Appavu had contested the 2016 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election from the Radhapuram constituency and lost to the first respondent, Mr. I.S. Inbadurai, by a margin of 49 votes as declared by the Returning Officer. He challenged the result on the ground that 203 postal ballots validly cast in his favour had been wrongly rejected on the basis that they were attested by Headmasters of Middle Schools, who were not Gazetted Officers within the meaning of the election rules.

After examining the evidence and recording the testimony of two Returning Officers, the High Court had, by an order dated October 1, 2019, concluded that the Headmasters of Middle Schools are Gazetted Officers and that their attestation of the postal ballots in Form 13A was legally valid. The Court further found that the counting of votes in the 19th, 20th, and 21st rounds had not complied with Rule 56C(2) of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, and directed a recount.

The recount carried out in the premises of the High Court under the supervision of a Registrar revealed that of the 203 disputed postal ballots, 153 had been cast in favour of Mr. Appavu and only one in favour of Mr. Inbadurai, with 44 rejected. The High Court noted that, if those votes were counted, Mr. Appavu would have won the seat by a margin of 103 votes.

Mr. Inbadurai challenged the October 2019 order before the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court entertained the special leave petition and, on October 4, 2019, permitted the counting to proceed while directing that the results not be declared. The matter was thereafter listed on numerous occasions across different benches over a period of nearly six years without a final hearing. When the Supreme Court finally took up the case on May 21, 2026, it disposed of the appeal by keeping the legal question regarding the Gazetted Officer status of Headmasters open for consideration in an appropriate future case, and remitted the matter to the High Court for consequential orders, observing that the term of office had expired and no useful purpose would be served in adjudicating the question in that appeal.

The High Court, in its final order, observed that the Supreme Court had not reversed its finding that Middle School Headmasters are Gazetted Officers. Taking the position that it had a Constitutional duty to protect and preserve the Constitution and was not inclined to abdicate its responsibility, the Court held that the finding stood and that the Election Petition must accordingly be allowed.

The Court declared the election of Mr. I.S. Inbadurai as void and declared Mr. M. Appavu as the duly elected representative of Radhapuram for the term 2016 to 2021. The Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly was directed to substitute Mr. Appavu's name in all official records for that term. The Court clarified that the improper declaration was not attributable to Mr. Inbadurai's conduct and that he would not be disqualified in any manner except from claiming pensionary benefits as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the relevant term.

The Court also took the opportunity to express concern over the systemic failure to resolve election disputes within the six-month period mandated by Section 86(7) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Recalling the Supreme Court's observations in Mohd. Akbar v. Ashok Sahu and Others, (2015) 14 SCC 519, on the dangers of delay in election adjudication, the Court observed that non-adherence to the statutory mandate undermines democracy and the spirit of adult franchise. No order as to costs was made.

Case Title: M. Appavu v. I.S. Inbadurai and Others, Election Petition No. 2 of 2016

[Read Order]