The district recorded a voting percentage of 65.9 when polling came to a close at 5 p.m. on Monday. Udumbanchola posted 69.9 per cent; Devikulam, 65.8; Idukki, 64.4; Thodupuzha, 63.9; and Peerumade, 67.1.
Polling started on a dull note due to rain, but picked up before noon. The polling percentage, 10.8 reported till 10 a.m., reached 31.9 percentage at 12 noon. Devikulam, which is in the tea estate area of Munnar where a women collective, Pengal Otrumai, launched a powerful agitation without political support, recorded the lowest turnout of voters (9.8 per cent) till 10 a.m. Voting picked up to reach 56.8 percentage by 4.30 p.m. when the total voting percentage was 62.21. The cardamom plantation area of Udumbanchola recorded the highest voting percentage of 63.2 at 4.30 p.m. The percentages of voting in other constituencies till 4.30 p.m. are: Thodupuzha - 58.1, Idukki - 58.8, and Peerumade - 61.1.
Polling was peaceful and no major incidents of violence were reported in the district. In the remote tribal grama panchayat of Edamalakkudy, a high percentage of voting was recorded. Till 1 p.m. Edamalakkudy recorded 56.7 percentage of voting, with Parappayarkudy posting the highest percentage of 54.2. The polling process at Edamalakkudy was webcast live through a facility arranged at the collectorate in Painavu. In the earlier elections, ham radio was used for the purpose.
Tension at check-post
Tension prevailed for some time at the Bodimettu check-post when people tried to prevent vehicles from Tamil Nadu passing through. The Congress had filed a complaint that the CPI(M) was bringing voters from Tamil Nadu in vehicles to cast their votes in Udumbanchola where M.M. Mani of CPI(M) is contesting against Congress’s Senapathy Venu.
A voter who fainted while standing on the queue died at a booth in Puttady. The police said he fainted. Though he was rushed to a hospital he died. An official at the Special Branch said that there was a complaint that CPI (M) workers damaged the election committee office of the Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) at Koottar.
