Ahead of Lok Sabha polls, Madras High Court restrains Panneerselvam from using ‘two leaves’ symbol, AIADMK flag

AIADMK's expelled leader O. Panneerselvam restrained from using party symbols and claiming party membership by Madras High Court.

AIADMK’s expelled leader O. Panneerselvam suffered a setback ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, with the Madras High Court on Monday, March 18, 2024, granting an interim injunction restraining him from using the party’s official letterhead, the ‘two leaves’ symbol and the party flag. It also restrained him from claiming to be the coordinator or even a primary member of the party.

Justice N. Sathish Kumar passed the orders while allowing a bunch of applications filed by AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami last year, seeking this interim relief until the disposal of a civil suit filed by him seeking a permanent injunction against the expelled leader.

In his plaint, Mr. Palaniswami said Mr. Panneerselvam was expelled from primary membership of the party by its general council on July 11, 2022 for several anti-party activities including the ransacking of the party’s headquarters. He also stated that the expelled leader had failed to obtain favourable orders in the legal challenge put up against his expulsion. Yet, on April 20, 2023, a person named K. Kumar filed a nomination to contest the Karnataka Assembly elections as the AIADMK candidate and submitted forms signed by Mr. Panneerselvam who claimed to be the coordinator of the party.

“The conduct of the defendant in desperately holding out as the coordinator of AIADMK party is not only to mislead the public and misrepresent as though he is continuing in the post, but also a fraudulent act in itself under law,” the plaintiff said and pointed out that a First Information Report (FIR) had been registered in Bengaluru on the basis of the Returning Officer’s complaint.

“Despite the lodging of a criminal complaint and registration of the FIR, the defendant did not cease from indulging in illegal acts such as fraud, forgery and misrepresentation and holding out as the coordinator of the party, in order to gain publicity,” the plaintiff said and referred to various announcements made by Mr. Panneerselvam using the party’s official letterhead.

“The defendant, who is now a stranger to the party, is deliberately misrepresenting and continuing to portray himself as the coordinator of the AIADMK party when no such post even exists in the party any more. The defendant has been wilfully and fraudulently damaging the reputation of AIADMK by misusing its official letterheads and misleading the public,” the plaint read.

The plaint also went on to accuse Mr. Panneerselvam of having made various “illegal” appointments and removals to party posts by “forging” the official letterhead of the party and calling himself the coordinator. Even his X (formerly Twitter) handle continues to describe him as the coordinator of AIADMK, the plaintiff complained.