[Letter to Mr Doraisamy Nadar]

Summary

This three-page correspondence file from April–May 1975 records Swatantra Party communications about electoral litigation and party organisation. A. Duraiswamy urges V. S. Srikumar to challenge the validity of Gujarat’s electoral rolls in the Gujarat High Court before notification of the state assembly election, arguing that the rolls were prepared using the 1961 census rather than the 1971 census and therefore conflicted with constitutional requirements. He presents the case as urgent and as a special political mission for the party.

Key points

• A. Duraiswamy calls for immediate litigation in the Gujarat High Court concerning the state’s electoral rolls.
• The correspondence argues that electoral rolls should be based on the 1971 census rather than the earlier 1961 census.
• The proposed legal remedy must precede the Election Commission’s notification of the Gujarat assembly election.
• V. S. Srikumar forwards Duraiswamy’s proposal to Girish Munshi and notes that Gujarat constituencies had been delimited using the 1971 census.
• Girish Munshi says the party has already challenged the Election Commission on the symbol issue and may also challenge the party’s dissolution.
• Munshi reports that the Swatantra Party has no functioning group in Gujarat and suggests concentrating efforts on the 1976 general election and rebuilding the party in Tamil Nadu.