Chennai, Oct 8 The counting of votes for the Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly by-elections in Tamil Nadu will be taken up on Friday amidst a three-tier security cover.
The crucial by-polls held after the TVK came to power in May is viewed as a test for its popularity while the opposition AIADMK hopes to regain the seats lost to the TVK in the April Assembly elections.
The counting of votes will take place at the LRG Government Arts and Science College, Dharapuram, in Tiruppur district, and the Integrated Social Development Training Centre at Aathur (in Chengalpattu district) for Madurantakam.
The counting hall for Dharapuram features 14 tables dedicated to EVM vote counting and 2 tables for processing postal ballots and similar arrangement at Madurantakam.
Both centres have been placed under a stringent three-tier security blanket to ensure a transparent process.
Following the conclusion of polling on October 6, the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and VVPAT units were securely transported to their designated strongrooms and sealed.
According to an official, a team of 2,614 state police personnel were working along with 480 Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel in Madurantakam while around 1,000 police personnel are covering the security arrangements for the constituency, supplemented by election monitoring staff and central forces in Dharapuram.
Tiruppur DEO Manish Narnaware said the strongroom at LRG Government Arts and Science College has been sealed under a heavy security layer featuring also 24/7 CCTV tracking. Three deputy collector-level officials have been assigned to round-the-clock district monitoring until the counting concludes tomorrow.
Chengalpattu Collector M Veerappan said that after completing a peaceful polling cycle all EVMs are heavily guarded under a layered central-to-local security cover at the Integrated Social Development Training Centre in Aathur.
As per the final figures released by the ECI, Madurantakam recorded 86.26 percent voter turnout while Dharapuram polled 80.30 percent.
Despite the strong numbers, both constituencies saw a significant dip in turnout compared to the Assembly elections held just five months ago. Madurantakam’s turnout dropped by nearly 7 percent, while Dharapuram’s participation fell by about 9.5 percent.
(PTI News)
