Thiruvananthapuram: The Election Commission has determined that the recent revelations made by former CPM Minister G Sudhakaran amount to violations under as many as four sections of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. According to Chief Election Commissioner Rahan U Khelkar, Sudhakaran's disclosures constitute a serious breach of electoral law.

Offences and penalties under Representation of the People Act, 1951
Section 128: Pertains to the violation of voting secrecy. The penalty includes imprisonment for up to three months, or a fine, or both.
Section 135: Concerns the unlawful removal of ballot papers from a polling station. Offenders face imprisonment of up to one year, or a fine up to ₹500, or both.
Section 135A: Addresses various forms of election interference, including seizing control of a polling station, intimidating voters, or disrupting the counting process. Punishment ranges from one to three years of imprisonment.
Section 136: Relates to the manipulation of ballot papers. The punishment includes up to six months of imprisonment, a fine, or both.

Sudhakaran's remark on 1989 election

The incident in question took place during the 1989 Lok Sabha elections, which saw the highest voter turnout in Kerala’s history, recording a polling percentage of 79.3%. The Alappuzha constituency topped the list with a remarkable 84.87% voter turnout.

At the time, Kerala was under the administration of the EK Nayanar-led government. In the Alappuzha constituency, Congress candidate Vakkom Purushothaman emerged victorious with a margin of 25,123 votes. Vakkom secured 3,75,763 votes, while his CPM rival, KV Devadas, bagged 3,50,640 votes.

Sudhakaran takes a u-turn
Meanwhile, Sudhakaran did a volte-face after his remark on the ballot tampering triggered a political controversy and the officials recorded his statement.

What he said on Wednesday: “When postal ballots are cast, NGO union workers handle them separately. Not everyone does it, but a few do. Otherwise, don’t hand them over to us and send them directly. When KV Devadas was contesting, so we opened the ballots at the DC office. It’s easy to open something that’s just pasted shut. About 15% of the votes were on the other side. After opening them, we verified and made necessary corrections. Even if a case is registered against me now for this, I have no issues with it.”

What he said yesterday: “No ballots were opened or checked at the party office. I was speaking generally and added a touch of imagination to it. No one has tampered with any ballots. I have never participated in such activities, nor have I ever cast a bogus vote. Since there's a campaign suggesting that some people in the NGO union are doing so, I made that statement to alert them and create the impression that we’re aware of everything.”