DMDK’s Vijaya Prabhakaran seeks to withdraw challenge to MP’s victory

DMDK youth wing secretary V. Vijaya Prabhakaran has asked the Madras High Court for permission to withdraw his election petition challenging Congress MP B. Manickam Tagore’s victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

In an application before Justice N. Sathish Kumar, Prabhakaran said he no longer wished to take the petition to trial and wanted to focus on public life instead of continuing litigation pending for two years. He sought permission under Sections 109 and 110 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.

The judge directed him to notify all parties and publish his intention in the official gazette. The steps are intended to establish whether another eligible person wishes to replace him and continue the challenge, according to The Hindu. The Virudhunagar contest was a three-way race involving Tagore, Prabhakaran and BJP candidate R.

Radikaa Sarathkumar. Tagore won 385,256 votes and defeated Prabhakaran by 4,379 votes; Prabhakaran received 380,877 votes. The petition accused the returning officer and alleged that political pressure had influenced the result.

It also raised claims concerning the acceptance of Tagore’s nomination, disclosure of assets and criminal cases, alleged voter inducement, counting practices, postal ballots and election expenditure. Tagore had applied in 2024 to have the petition rejected, arguing that the allegations were vague and that a guarantee card referred to his party’s manifesto rather than a corrupt practice. Justice Kumar rejected that application on March 4, 2025 and allowed the petition to proceed to trial.

The court has not yet ruled on Prabhakaran’s withdrawal request.