Section 26 in Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Elections) Rules, 1995
26. Presentation of nomination paper.
(1)The nomination of every candidate shall be made by means of a nomination paper in Form 3. Copies of the Form can be had from the offices specified in the notice of election on any working day.(2)On the date or dates specified in the election notice for the presentation of nomination papers, each candidate qualified to contest the election as per section 33 of the Act shall, either in person or by his proposer, deliver to the Returning Officer at the place and during the hours specified in that behalf, a nomination paper completed in Form 3 and signed by the candidate and by a proposer who shall be an elector -(a)in the respective Ward of Village Panchayat in the election of member or members of Village Panchayat;(b)in the Village Panchayat in the election of President;(c)in the Ward of the Panchayat Union in the election of member of the Panchayat Union; and(d)in the Ward of the District Panchayat in the election of member of District Panchayat:Provided that no nomination paper for election shall be delivered to the Returning Officer on a day which is a public holiday.(3)If the seat is reserved for Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, [*] [Omitted by G.O. Ms. No. 163, Rural Development, dated the 7th August 1997.] a candidate shall furnish a declaration, in the nomination form made by him specifying the particular caste or tribe of which he is a member and the area in relation to which the caste or tribe is notified as a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe [*] [Omitted by G.O. Ms. No. 163, Rural Development, dated the 7th August 1997.] of the State.(4)On the presentation of a nomination paper, the Returning Officer shall satisfy himself that the names and electoral roll numbers of the candidate and his proposer as entered in the nomination paper are the same as those entered in the electoral roll:Provided that the Returning Officer shall permit any misnomer or inaccurate description or clerical or printing error in the nomination paper in regard to the said names or numbers to be corrected or to bring them in conformity with the corresponding entries in the electoral roll and, wherever necessary, direct that any clerical or printing error in the said entries shall be overlooked.(5)Nothing contained in this rule shall prevent any candidate from being nominated by more than one nomination paper for any one election:Provided that not more than four nomination papers shall be presented by or on behalf of any candidate for any one election.(6)An elector who wishes to stand as a candidate for an election, excepting for the election of a member in a multi-member Ward of Village Panchayats, shall not sign any nomination paper as a proposer for that election.(7)In the case of election of members of a Panchayat or President of a Village Panchayat, an elector can sign as many nomination papers as there are vacancies to be filled, but no more. An elector who wishes to stand as a candidate in an election to a single member Ward of a Village Panchayat, or a member of a Panchayat Union Council or of a District Panchayat or President of a Village Panchayat, shall not sign any nomination as proposer. An elector who wishes to stand as a candidate in a multi-member Ward of a Village Panchayat, may propose other candidates, provided, the maximum number of nomination papers signed by him as proposer shall be one less than number of members to be elected to that Ward.(8)[ If a person presents nomination papers in violation of sub-rule (1) of rule 30, the Returning Officer shall pending scrutiny and orders and also subject to the provisions contained in sub-rule (3) of rule 30 shall receive them.] [ Added by G.O. Ms. No. 175, Rural Development (PE), dated the 28th August 1997.]
