The AIADMK’s winning candidate for Chennai North, T.G. Venkatesh Babu, maintained a minimum margin of 5,000 votes in each round.
The counting started on a dull note and as the leads for the first round were announced a little later, Mr. Babu’s confidence grew.
On the other hand, the DMK cadre lost hope by the sixth round and AIADMK partymen were swarming all over the centre. The DMK’s R. Girirajan was visibly dejected as were his supporters hanging on at the counting centre.
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Slow counting of votes at Dr. R.K. Nagar was the main reason for the delay as anyone present at the centre could see. Security at the counting centre in Queen Mary’s College was so tight that no counting agents were allowed without any passes, and cell phones had to be deposited at the entrance.