The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Paramilitary forces arrive in Kanchi

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 06, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Paramilitary forces arrive in Kanchi

Staff Reporter

KANCHEEPURAM: Two companies of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and a company of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) arrived here on Thursday for by-election duty. One more company of the CRPF is expected to arrive in a day or two, according to official sources.

While the CRPF battalion has been accommodated in Anna Arangam here, the CISF personnel have been put up at the Government Girls High School, Wallajabad. Both the paramilitary forces will be under the control of election observers deputed by the Election Commission and the District Electoral Officer-cum-Collector. The Superintendent of Police, Kancheepuram, will act as a nodal officer.

The chief agent for the Democratic Progressive Alliance and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam district secretary, T.M. Anbarasan, sought deployment of paramilitary forces at all the polling stations. Alleging that the Tamil Nadu police were "hand-in-glove" with the ruling AIADMK, he apprehended that there was possibility of booth capturing and bogus voting by ruling party cadres within the limits of the municipal area.

Pointing out that there were 118 booths in Kancheepuram town, he asked the Election Commission to deploy central paramilitary forces in all the booths in the "interest of justice and fair polling." Mr. Anbarasan alleged that revenue officials were being pressured by the ruling party to prepare false identity cards of voters who had move out from the constituency and in the names of deceased voters. A fresh voter list should be prepared after deleting the names of the deceased and it should be released three days prior to the day of polling.

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

Tamil Nadu