Votes polled in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur to be counted today

Entry to the counting centres will be restricted to authorised persons only

All is set for the counting of votes polled in the Assembly election to the Aravakurichi and Thanjavur constituencies on Tuesday.

Counting of votes polled will be taken up at 8 am on Tuesday and the leads are expected to be available within an hour. Former Minister V.Senthil Balaji of AIADMK and K.C.Pallani Shamy, DMK, are the main contenders among 39 candidates in Aravakurichi, while M.Rengasamy, AIADMK, and Anugam Boopathy, DMK, are the main rivals in a field of 14 candidates in Thanjavur.

Polling was held on November 19 after the Election Commission countermanded polling during the Assembly election in the two constituencies in May following largescale seizure of money.

Counting of votes polled in the Aravakurichi constituency will be taken up at the M. Kumarasamy College of Engineering at Thalavaipalayam, where the electronic voting machines were kept in the strong room.

Collector-cum-District Election Officer K. Govindaraj said that the EVMs will be opened up in the presence of General Observer and representatives of candidates. A total of 135 personnel had been drawn for counting. Nineteen micro observers would monitor the counting. Agents were given instruction to report at the counting centre at 7 am.

T.K. Rajasekaran, Superintendent of Police, said that five-tier security system was in place at the counting centre with the deployment of 790 police personnel. It included two ADSPs, seven DSPs and 29 Inspectors. Except the designated officers no one would be allowed to carry mobile phone, ball point and inflammatory items to the counting centre.

In Thanjavur, the electronic voting machines are in safe custody at the strong room of the Kundavai Nachiyar Government Arts College here with three-tier round-the-clock security. More than 400 security personnel have been deployed for the purpose.

There will be 14 tables and the votes will be counted in 20 rounds. Counting in each table will be monitored by a micro observer, a supervisor and an assistant and an agent of the candidate will be allowed for each table.

Barricades have been put up in the vicinity of the counting centre to regulate the movement of the enthusiastic party cadres. Entry to the counting centres will be restricted to authorised persons only.