Archive · 28 Sep 2026
Madras High Court Upholds TVK Candidate’s One-Vote Tirupattur Victory
R Seenivasa Sethupathy won an election in Tirupattur by only one vote.
He received 83,375 votes, while K R Periakaruppan received 83,374.
Periakaruppan asked the court to cancel the result.
He said a postal vote may have been counted in the wrong constituency.
There are two constituencies named Tirupattur in different parts of Tamil Nadu.
The court said constituency numbers and other details help identify where each postal ballot belongs.
Justice G K Illanthiraiyan found no mistake in the postal-vote counting.
Therefore, the court upheld Sethupathy’s victory.
The Madras High Court upheld R Seenivasa Sethupathy’s victory in Tirupattur Assembly constituency.
Sethupathy received 83,375 votes, defeating former DMK Minister K R Periakaruppan by one vote.
Periakaruppan challenged the result, alleging a postal ballot was counted in the wrong Tirupattur constituency.
The two similarly named constituencies are in Sivaganga district and Tirupattur district, with constituency numbers 185 and 50 respectively.
Justice G K Illanthiraiyan found no discrepancy in the accounting of postal votes and rejected Sethupathy’s election-petition challenge application.
- Who
- R Seenivasa Sethupathy, K R Periakaruppan, and Justice G K Illanthiraiyan were central to the case.
- What
- The Madras High Court upheld Sethupathy’s one-vote victory over Periakaruppan in the Tirupattur Assembly constituency.
- When
- The ruling was issued on Monday following the 2026 general elections.
- Where
- The case was heard in the Madras High Court and concerned the Tirupattur constituency in Sivaganga district, Tamil Nadu.
- Why
- Periakaruppan sought to overturn the result, alleging that a postal vote from his constituency had been counted in another similarly named constituency.
Periakaruppan’s Election Challenge
Sethupathy’s Defence
Postal-ballot accounting
Periakaruppan’s Election Challenge
Periakaruppan alleged that a postal vote belonging to the Sivaganga district constituency had been erroneously accounted for in another constituency also named Tirupattur.
Sethupathy’s Defence
Sethupathy’s counsel argued that postal ballots use multiple identifiers, including constituency numbers, Form 12 submissions, and the full address of the relevant Returning Officer, leaving no scope for such confusion.
Validity of the election result
Periakaruppan’s Election Challenge
Periakaruppan sought to set aside Sethupathy’s victory through an election petition.
Sethupathy’s Defence
Sethupathy sought rejection of the election petition, and the High Court upheld his one-vote victory after finding no postal-vote discrepancy.
- Winner
- R Seenivasa Sethupathy of TVK
- Runner-up
- K R Periakaruppan, former DMK Minister
- Vote totals
- Sethupathy: 83,375; Periakaruppan: 83,374
- Victory margin
- One vote
- Constituency at issue
- Tirupattur Assembly constituency in Sivaganga district
- Court
- Madras High Court
- Presiding judge
- Justice G K Illanthiraiyan