# P. Veldurai

P. Veldurai (30 November 1949 – 24 October 2023) was an Indian politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). He was elected to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly as an Indian National Congress candidate from Cheranmadevi constituency in the 1996 and 2006 elections. P. Veldurai died on 24 October 2023, at the age of 73.

## Controversy

P. Veldurai courted controversy during his tenure as MLA as in 2011 the Supreme Court held that his election from Cheranmahadevi constituency in May 2006 was illegal, null and void, as he was a registered government civil contractor at the time of filing nominations and his registration had not been cancelled as per law. Veldurai was asked to repay ₹ 21.58 lakh that he'd drawn as salary, which he contested in the court of law. Finally, he was subject of a landmark judgement of the Madras High Court on 26 February 2019 that held that Members of Parliament (MPs) as well as MLAs are liable to be asked to repay salaries and other emoluments, along with penalty, if a court of law declares their election to be illegal, null and void either before or after the completion of their tenure.

## Electoral performance

2006 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election : Cheranmadevi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | P. Veldurai | 48,527 | 43.72% | New |
| | AIADMK | P. H. Manoj Pandian | 42,495 | 38.29% | −15.23 |
| | DMDK | S. Rajendra Nathan | 8,122 | 7.32% | New |
| | AIFB | A. Paramasivan | 5,966 | 5.37% | New |
| | BSP | S. Udayakumar | 1,920 | 1.73% | New |
| | BJP | P. Arumuganainar | 1,626 | 1.46% | −40.27 |
| | RLD | R. Achuthan | 1,055 | 0.95% | New |
| | Independent | A. Paulrathinam | 805 | 0.73% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 6,032 | 5.43% | −6.34% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 110,996 | 69.85% | 9.52% |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 158,911 | | |
| | INC gain from AIADMK | INC gain from AIADMK | Swing | -9.79% | |
1996 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election : Cheranmadevi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | TMC(M) | P. Veldurai | 39,004 | 39.41% | New |
| | Independent | P. H. Pandian | 26,897 | 27.18% | New |
| | AIADMK | M. R. Janarthanan | 18,002 | 18.19% | −47.25 |
| | CPI(M) | S. K. Palanichamy | 6,296 | 6.36% | New |
| | Independent | S. Mariyasundaram | 2,405 | 2.43% | New |
| | Independent | M. Susindran | 2,179 | 2.20% | New |
| | BJP | S. Muthappa | 1,985 | 2.01% | New |
| | Independent | M. Raj | 629 | 0.64% | New |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 12,107 | 12.23% | −25.77% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 98,977 | 71.69% | 4.63% |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 145,196 | | |
| | TMC(M) gain from AIADMK | TMC(M) gain from AIADMK | Swing | -26.03% | |
1989 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election : Cheranmadevi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | AIADMK | P. H. Pandian | 26,113 | 27.06% | −40.39 |
| | DMK | R. Avudaiappan | 25,413 | 26.34% | −5.31 |
| | INC | P. Veldurai | 23,270 | 24.12% | New |
| | AIADMK | T. P. S. H. Amarnath Prapahar Ram Sait | 20,409 | 21.15% | −46.3 |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 700 | 0.73% | −35.08% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 96,494 | 78.60% | 0.92% |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 124,735 | | |
| | AIADMK hold | AIADMK hold | Swing | -40.39% | |