The second phase of polling for rural local bodies in 27 districts of Tamil Nadu ended largely peacefully but for the murder of a man in Thoothukudi district on Monday.
Counting of votes will take place as scheduled on January 2, with the Madras High Court giving its green signal for the same.
Police in Thoothukudi said that ‘Race Vandi’ Mariappan, who was engaged in election work for Ottapidaaram village panchayat president candidate Ilaiyaraja, was murdered, reportedly by supporters of Maasaana Samy, husband of former president of the panchayat, Latha, after clashes broke out between supporters of the two candidates.
In the central region, a woman candidate, M. Mallika, contesting for a panchayat ward member post in Neduvasal West panchayat in Tiruvarankulam panchayat union, died even as polling was under way.
She complained of acute stomach pain while she was getting ready to go to the polling station in the morning. Mallika was rushed to the Peravurani Government Hospital in Thanjavur district but she died on the way.
Following this polling officials struck off her name and symbol from the model ballot paper outside the polling booth and allowed the poll to go on.
Elections boycotted
In Karur district, A. Johnson, 42, a head constable attached to Velayuthampalayam police station died of a heart attack while on poll duty.
Meanwhile, the residents of Arakkadavu and Moonukuttai village panchayats in Karamadai panchayat union boycotted the local body elections as announced earlier. On December 25, the residents accused the district administration of not taking any steps to lay bitumen-topped roads for their villages, which are less than 500 metres apart. Except for about 30 residents, the rest boycotted the poll.
Most of the wards where repolling was ordered due to a mix-up of ballot papers or a candidate’s symbol missing from the ballot papers, saw brisk voting.
Voters in Athimur, Tindivanam panchayat in Polur block of Tiruvannamalai district, raised apprehensions over inordinate delay in the poll process as two wards — 3 and 8 — were grouped in a single polling booth. Officials were tight-lipped on this issue and pleaded helplessness.
At a booth in Kongrampattu village in West Arni panchayat union, a large number of Narikuravas (gypsies) turned up to exercise their franchise.
Booths set up in the hilly terrain of Jamunamarathur in Jawadhu Hills saw a good voter turnout since morning and the numbers swelled in the afternoon.
In Tiruvallur district, polling did not start in two wards – Kammavarpalayam and Akarambedu – in Nallur panchayat as the voter list got mixed up. Voting resumed after the Tahsildar and other officials offered to ferry the villagers to their respective polling booths.
HC allows counting
The Madras High Court dismissed a petition that sought the deferring of declaration of results for the rural local bodies till the conduct of urban local body polls.
Dismissing the petition, a division bench of Justice S. Vaidyanathan and Justice P.T. Asha noted that the issue of declaration of results for the rural local bodies had been brought to the knowledge of the Supreme Court which did not deem it fit to put the declaration of results on hold.
The High Court said if the petitioner had any grievance after the declaration of the results, he could challenge it. “This court is of the considered view that it is too premature for the petitioner to approach this court seeking direction not to declare the results of the elections,” the bench said.
(With inputs from Bureaus)
