The ruling-AIADMK had an unexpected and unwelcome impact in the national capital when all roads leading to the Nirvachan Sadan which is the headquarters of the Election Commission in New Delhi, were choked in a traffic jam.

Six trucks were parked outside the Election Commission office today. The trucks carried 6,20,000 affidavits from the VK Sasikala and O Panneerselvam factions of the AIADMK.

The affidavits have 18,60,000 pages and are in 2600 bundles. The AIADMK (Puratchi Thalaivi Amma), led by Panneerselvam, has alone filed 1.68 lakh affidavits.

The EC has no space to store the papers. Both factions have been given time till June 16 to submit the affidavits before the EC in the party symbol -- the two leaves -- issue.

Dr V Maitreyan of the OPS group and S Thambidurai deputy speaker of the Lok Sabha from the Edappadi Palaniswami (Sasikala) faction have ensured their papers reach the EC in time.

The EC car park is now full of AIADMK affidavits. The practice in the Election Commission has been to keep these papers for a year and sell it as raddi. The sale proceeds go to the Election Commission staff welfare fund.

"This is simply a political drama enacted by both groups. Never has there been such a huge number of affidavits filed with the EC," a source said.

Dr Maitreyan said the EC should insist that both the factions submit their documents in a digitised form. "Why spend lakhs of rupees in photocopying, attestation and transportation," he asked.

Relevant question.