However, the court clarified that there is no stay on the membership campaign itself.
Published Jul 21, 2025 | 1:21 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 21, 2025 | 1:21 PM
Madras High Court. (Wikimedia)
Synopsis: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court restrained DMK workers from collecting OTPs during its “Oraniyil Tamil Nadu” membership drive, following a PIL alleging misuse of personal data and coercion. While the campaign wasn’t stayed, the court sought responses from the Centre and UIDAI, and directed the DMK General Secretary to reply to the accusations.
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has issued an interim order restraining DMK functionaries from collecting OTP (One-Time Password) sent to voters’ mobile numbers as part of the party’s “Oraniyil Tamil Nadu” membership drive.
However, the court clarified that there is no stay on the membership campaign itself.
The directive came in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Rajkumar from Thiruppuvanam, Sivaganga district, who alleged that DMK cadres were illegally collecting Aadhaar numbers, voter IDs, bank passbook copies, and mobile OTPs without consent, even threatening to withhold government welfare benefits for non-cooperation.
DMK aimed to achieve 2 crore new membership and claimed that it had already achieved 50 percent of it.
As part of the campaign, DMK party workers have been going door-to-door, explaining the achievements and welfare schemes of the DMK government to the public. During these visits, they collect residents’ phone numbers and request an OTP sent to those numbers.
Once the OTP is entered into their software system, an automated message is triggered, thanking the recipient for “joining the DMK.”
The court also directed the Union Government and the UIDAI (Aadhaar authority) to respond to the petition and instructed the DMK General Secretary to file a reply.
(Edited by Sumavarsha, with inputs from Subash Chandra Bose)
