Overview
- Kerala police have registered a case and opened an FIR-linked probe after video footage showed money in an elderly voter’s hand in Palakkad.
- Election authorities are conducting a separate inquiry, with the District Returning Officer recording Sobha Surendran’s statement and preparing a report for the state Chief Electoral Officer.
- Sobha Surendran denies wrongdoing, calls the episode a conspiracy, and has filed a counter-complaint with election officials.
- Internal party strife has grown as former BJP district vice-president Bindu Vinayakumar filed a police complaint alleging threats from Surendran, after which the BJP suspended her.
- Jamaat-e-Islami has sent a legal notice seeking an apology or Rs 1 crore over Surendran’s campaign remarks, adding a parallel legal dispute as results for Kerala’s 140 seats approach.