Political parties should strictly adhere to the model code of conduct and extend their full cooperation for the peaceful conduct of the by-election in the Tiruchi West Assembly constituency, said Jayashree Muralidharan, Collector, here on Friday.
Speaking at an all-party meeting, Ms.Muralidharan said already six teams including two flying squads, two static surveillance teams and special teams for video graphing have been formed in the district to monitor the by-election process as per the guidelines of the Election Commission.
A media certification and monitoring committee has also been formed to screen and certify advertisements issued by parties and candidates. If necessary, more flying squads and static surveillance teams would be formed for the by-election.
No advertisement in public places including wall writings, posters, hoardings and cut-outs would be permitted as per the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Open Places (Prevention of Disfigurement) Act 1959.
All public meetings should be held at the notified places and with prior permission from the police. Permission would be granted on first-come first-served basis. Campaigning would be permitted only between 6 a.m and 10 p.m. Permits should be obtained for vehicles used by the candidates and they should be prominently pasted on the respective vehicles.
R.Manohar, MLA, and urban district secretary, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, called upon the district administration to ensure that the by-election was free and fair as the Tiruchi West constituency has gained notoriety for poll code violations during the recent Assembly elections.
K.N.Sekaran, MLA, DMK, K.Kalyanaraman of the Congress, K.Suresh, city secretary, CPI, Vijayarajan, urban district secretary, Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam, and representatives of various other political parties attended the meeting.
Speaking to media persons after the meeting, Ms.Muralidharan said 240 polling stations would be set up for the by-election in the Tiruchi West constituency.
Answering a query, the process of identifying the sensitive booths would be taken up as per the guidelines of the Election Commission. Election Observers are expected to be announced soon. During the Assembly election, about 75 polling stations were identified as vulnerable.
Applications for inclusion of deletion of names would not be accepted in bulk, she said.
