The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Yanam can tilt the balance

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 09, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Yanam can tilt the balance

By R. Jagadeeswara Rao

Rajahmundry May 8. The Yanam Assembly segment, which is part of the Pondicherry Lok Sabha constituency going to the polls on Monday, enjoys a unique position and may tilt the balance in favour of one or the other candidate. Geographically, the Pondicherry Lok Sabha seat needs a special mention. This constituency has as many as 30 Assembly seats, abutting the States of Tamil Nadu, Kerala (Mahe-two Assembly seats) and Andhra Pradesh (Yanam-one Assembly seat). Traditionally it is a bastion for the Congress and the former MLA, Malladi Krishna Rao, belonging to the Congress, commands considerable influence among voters. However this time there was no Congress candidate for the Lok Sabha seat and this had evidently disappointed Congress activists. As part of electoral understanding among the DMK-Congress-Left and other parties alliance in Tamil Nadu, the seat was allotted to PMK candidate, M. Ram Doss. His main rival is the BJP-AIADMK-sponsored candidate, Lalitha Kumara Mangalam of the BJP. Time was when, owing to the spread of the Lok Sabha constituency in three States, few leaders came to Yanam for campaigning during Lok Sabha elections and local leaders used to carry on all the propaganda. But this time senior leaders from both alliance groups, including the Chief Minister of Pondicherry, N.Rangaswamy (for the PMK candidate) and the Union Minister of State for Rural Development, U.V.Krishnam Raju (for the BJP candidate), came for campaigning which ended on Saturday evening.

Mr.Krishnam Raju who went on a `road show' programme in the entire Yanam town on Friday evening urged voters to vote for `development and stability'. On the other hand the Chief Minister of Pondicherry was confident that the PMK candidate would get nearly two-thirds majority in the Yanam Assembly segment.

Because of its location and comparatively cheap tax structure on all types of liquor, Yanam is considered a `haven for boozers'.

There are instances where people from Kakinada went to Yanam `just for a few drinks'. However, the Administrator of Yanam, S.D.Sunderesan, said on Saturday that sale of liquor was banned from May 8 to 13 which is the date of counting of Lok Sabha votes. There are a dozen liquor shops in Yanam and all have been sealed.

On the arrangement for the poll on Monday, Mr.Sundaresan said that there were in all 18,729 voters in the Yanam Assembly segment and 15 polling stations with a polling staff pattern of one Presiding Officer and four others are set up for the voters to exercise their franchise. Elections in the Yanam Assembly segment were held three times in the last five years. Incidentally Yanam voters would have the distinction of using EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines) in all the four elections.

It was during 1999 election when EVMs were introduced on an experimental basis that Yanam, basing on its high percentage of literacy, was selected for use of EVMs.

There was a Assembly byelection in 2000 followed by Assembly election in 2001 and on both occasions EVMs were used.

According to Mr.Sunderesan, Yanam voters were well versed in the use of EVMs and no special programme for popularising EVMs was required. Almost all voters have EPICs (Electronic Photo Identity Cards). All this should make the polling process easy. Mr.Sundaresan said that polling would start by 7 am and close by 5 pm.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh