The Tenkasi Lok Sabha constituency (reserved) recorded 71.06% voter turnout as polling ended peacefully on Friday even though few villages boycotted the election to highlight their demands.
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As Dalit heavyweights K. Krishnasamy of Puthiya Thamizhagam and B. John Pandian of Thamizhaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam are in the fray as rival candidates of the AIADMK and the BJP respectively, the police were on tenterhooks based on intelligence inputs. Yet no place in Tenkasi constituency witnessed any untoward incident during electioneering and the polling as well.
Brisk polling could be seen in almost all polling stations in the morning and it waned after 11 a.m. due to the heat. At least two days in advance, villagers of South Panaivadalichathram, who have migrated to Kerala for work, came back to their native place in large numbers to vote.
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The booth at Panaivadalichathram that witnessed enthusiastic polling right from 7 a.m., saw 100-year-old M. Subbammal of Vadakku Panaivadalichathram and 101-year-old M. Seevalapandiyan, also from the same village who had come to exercise their votes.
When she was brought to the polling booth by her great grandson in his car, Mrs. Subbammal asked him to drop her at the main entrance and walked for about 30 meters to reach the booth. She also turned down the women police’s request for using the wheelchair kept there. “I can walk,” smiled Mrs. Subbammal and started walking towards the booth with the plastic walking stick.
After waiting in front of the booth for about ten minutes as her niece was bringing Mrs. Subbammal’s Electors’ Photo Identity Card, the veteran voter, who had exercised her franchise right from the first election held in Tamil Nadu, crossed five steps without anyone’s help to enter the booth.
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“I will come again to vote in the next election also,” said a beaming Mrs. Subbammal while showing her inked left index finger.
MDMK general secretary Vaiko and his son and candidate for Tiruchi Parliamentary constituency Durai Vaiyapuri cast their votes in a booth in his native place of Kalingapatti near Sankarankovil in Tenkasi (Reserve) constituency. After exercising his franchise, Mr. Vaiko hoped that the DMK-led alliance would register resounding victory in the election.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not get the victory he is dreaming of and hence BJP would not get majority to form the government. At the same time, the INDIA bloc would form the coalition government,” he predicted.
Mr. Vaiko also expressed displeasure over the functioning of the Election Commission of India. “It is no more an independent organization,” he said while speaking with reporters in his house at Kalingapatti.