Violence mars civic poll

By Our Tamil Nadu Bureau

CHENNAI, OCT. 16. Booth capturing, `stuffing' of ballot boxes, road blockades, group clashes and police firing marred the first phase of the local bodies poll in the State today.

According to preliminary figures, the voter turnout was 56 per cent in urban areas and 52 in rural areas. But in Chennai, which witnessed unprecedented incidents of electoral malpractices, the polling was estimated at barely 35 per cent.

AIADMK blamed

Election officials and the Opposition parties pointed the finger at the ruling AIADMK as complaints of bogus voting and intimidation of voters poured in from Chennai. The modus operandi was similar. Gangs came to the booths in several autorickshaws and vans, threatened the election agents, chased away the waiting voters and `stuffed' the boxes. In the forefront of the AIADMK manoeuvres were its local leaders, Mr. P.K. Sekar Babu, an MLA, and Mr. Karate Thiagarajan, a contestant in one of the Corporation wards.

Polling was ``stopped'' in four booths in the city following complaints of booth capturing. A repoll has been ordered in seven booths in the Chennai Corporation for October 19.

A repoll was also ordered in four village panchayat wards - two in Kancheepuram and one each in Cuddalore and Virudhunagar districts - and in three other wards and 18 booths in Vellore, since the symbols did not tally with the names of the candidates.

The police fired in the air at two villages-Veeracholan panchayat in Virudhunagar district and Thalayanpalayam near Gummidipoondi in Tiruvallur district-to disperse clashing groups. However, no one was injured in firing, the Home Secretary, Mr. Naresh Gupta, said.

In Dharmapuri district, the police resorted to a lathicharge in the Kambermallur panchayat union to disperse a group which tried to coerce the voters into voting for a particular party.

In Madurai city, polling was suspended in a booth at Palamedu following violent clashes in which a police vehicle was damaged and two policemen were injured.

Several voters in different parts, including Coimbatore, Cuddalore, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari, blocked roads in protest against deletion of their names from the voter list. At Avadiyapuram in Virudhunagar district, a group threw stones at a polling booth as its names were not found in the list.

The DMK president, Mr. M. Karunanidhi, tonight claimed that 353 booths in Chennai were `stuffed or captured'.

The party would consult allies and decide on the course of action to be taken. The election, he said, was not conducted in a free, fair and democratic manner.

The AICC secretary, Mr. Ramesh Chennithala, said ``there was widespread intimidation in many booths in Chennai including Tiruvanmiyur, Adyar and Mylapore.'' As there was no response from the Police Commissioner, Mr. K. Muthukaruppan, the party lodged a complaint with the SEC.

Complaints `exaggerated'

Describing the Opposition complaints of largescale arson as ``exaggerated'', the Home Secretary said the polling was peaceful, barring some minor incidents including nine cases of attack and two cases of group clashes.

The Director-General of Police, Mr. B. P. Nailwal, told the media that there were 28 incidents including two cases of police opening fire in the air to disperse clashing groups, two instances of `mild lathicharge', two cases of arson and 12 complaints of assault.

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Section  : Southern States
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