P.R. No. 656 Date:03.12.

2013

PRESS RELEASE

Text of the letter dated 2.12.2013 addressed by Selvi J Jayalalithaa,
Honble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to the Chief Election Commissioner,
Election Commission of India, New Delhi is reproduced below :-

With reference to the communication from the Election Commission of
India in the letter bearing No.100/TN-LA/1/2013, dated 2
nd
December, 2013,
which was enclosed along with the letter of the Chief Electoral Officer &
Principal Secretary to Government of Tamil Nadu vide his reference
No.3806/2013-330, dated 2.12.2013, which was received by me at 3.30 pm
on 2.12.2013, I am sending the following reply.
At the outset, your notice does not mention the name of the complainant
but from the contents of the complaint extracted in the second para of the
notice it is presumed that the complaint has been made by the Dravida
Munnetra Kazhagam which is an adversary and political rival of the All India
Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. It is vehemently denied that any
announcement of new schemes was made while I was campaigning for the
AIADMK Party candidate on 28.11.2013 in Yercaud Constituency.
My speeches to the electorate were in Tamil. I never made any promise
or announcement of any new schemes in any of my speeches made on
28.11.2013. I referred to the various development schemes already
implemented and under implementation in the State after I assumed charge
as Chief Minister of the State for the third term. I also referred to various
developmental schemes already implemented and under implementation in
Yercaud Constituency. I emphatically deny that my speech was in the nature
of alluding to different social and infrastructure requirements such as opening
of new Health Centres etc. I mentioned in my speech that the requirements for
the development of Yercaud Constituency have been brought to my notice.
I made a general statement that whatever is required for the
upliftment of the people in the area would be provided. It would not
be correct to link the unrelated general statement with the
requirements which were brought to my notice.
I did not promise that any specific schemes would be implemented.
I emphatically deny that I made any specific promise of providing any one of
the requirements which were brought to my notice. I repeat that in my
speech I only made a general statement that whatever is required for the
progress of the people living in Yercaud Constituency would be provided by the
Government. Hence there was no violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
I, further, state that since my speech was in Tamil the same has not
been correctly reflected in the English translation. No specific promises have
been made. I therefore, would reiterate that I have not violated sub para (vi)
of para II-Party in Power and no action is warranted on that score.


2

Further, in any event, in my speech I have not announced any financial
grant in any form, or promise thereof, and did not make promise of
construction of roads, provision of drinking water facilities etc., so as to attract
the above said Model Code of Conduct.
Your communication under reference proceeds on the basis of a
conjunctive reference to the requirements of the area and assurance to
meeting development requirements of the area by the Government. First of all
there is no basis for coming to such a conclusion in the fourth para of the
notice and that too by making a conjunctive reference, which is mere surmise
and suspicion and which is inadmissible in law, more so in the case of
interpreting the Model Code of Conduct.
In view of the above I would request you to drop the proposed action
pursuant to your show cause notice under reply.
Further, it is also brought to your notice that my name has been
misspelt in the communication sent to me.
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Issued by: Director, Information-Public Relations, Chennai-600009.
Date: 3.12.2013