Polls for Vellore LS seat on August 5: EC

The Election Commission (EC) on Thursday announced that the election for the Vellore Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu will be held on August 5.

The poll body announced the kicking in of the Model Code of Conduct with immediate effect in the district(s) in which the whole or any part of the parliamentary constituency going for election lies.

"The Model Code of Conduct shall be applicable to all candidates, political parties and state government concerned. It shall also be applicable to the Union government for the district of the state concerned," EC said.

The election for Vellore constituency which was to be held on April 18 was rescinded following the seizure of large amount of cash by the Income Tax department from a cement warehouse belonging to a DMK functionary.

The EC while rescinding the poll then said it was "fully satisfied" that the current electoral process in Vellore has been seriously vitiated on account of unlawful activities on behalf of DMK candidate Kathir Anand and some members/workers of the political party in question.

"In the Commission's considered opinion, allowing the current electoral process to proceed and conducting the poll in the constituency on April 18, 2019, as scheduled, in such a vitiated atmosphere would have severely jeopardised the conduct of free and fair elections," the poll body had said.

The DMK-led front won 37 out of 38 Lok Sabha constituencies that went to polls on April 18. IANS