Polling passed off peacefully in the district on Wednesday amidst comprehensive bandobust arrangements by the police .
There was no untoward incident anywhere in the district as police and paramilitary personnel stood guard at vantage places and near the booths as part of the security arrangements.
The district with two Assembly constituencies - Perambalur (reserved) and Kunnam- recorded an average polling of 80.5 per cent. Perambalur registered 80 per cent while Kunnam recorded 81 per cent when elections came to a close at 5 p.m. While it was a fight between the DMK and the AIADMK in Perambalur (reserved) Assembly constituency, the clash was between DMK and the DMDK in Kunnam segment.
Impressive turnout
There was an impressive voter turnout in several interior pockets in the district, including Arumbavur, Agaramsigoor, Labbaikudikadu, Kallapatti, Veppur and Poolambadi.
Polling began at the stipulated time of 8 a.m. at the booths after election officials deployed at the polling stations carried out a mock poll half-an-hour before voting commenced.
The district Collector M. Vijaykumar cast his vote a few minutes after voting commenced at the polling booth in St. Dominic Girls Higher Secondary School in Perambalur town.
Equal number of men and women armed with booth slips and electronic photo identity cards were seen standing in queues to cast their votes as soon as the polling commenced.
Cameras installed
In many booths across the district where web cameras were installed to rule out any scope of bogus voting, women voters outnumbered men and stood patiently, waiting for their turn.
Aged men and women and physically challenged persons braving the heat came to the booths to exercise their franchise.
Shamianas were put up in some booths to provide shelter to the waiting voters . The average polling percentage which was over 10 per cent at 9 a.m., an hour after voting began, gradually increased and crossed 60 per cent by 3 p.m.
The usual euphoria associated with election was missing throughout the day in the district with its electorate strength exceeding over 4.4 lakh.
Mobile parties
Mobile parties comprising police and paramilitary personnel kept moving in their respective jurisdictions to ensure that law and order was maintained.
Barricades were put up a few metres ahead of the polling booths situated in Perambalur town to prevent entry of vehicles, including two-wheelers, on the roads leading to the booths.
A few NCC cadets were also utilised as part of the security arrangement for regulating crowd at the booths.
Police sources said two companies of paramilitary personnel, 51 mobile parties and 15 Striking Forces were also deployed on the day of polling.
