Date:10/05/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/05/10/stories/2004051010750300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

`Residents have right to cast tendered vote'

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI, MAY 9. Residents who find their vote cast by some bogus voter can still exercise their franchise. All they have to do is to register a complaint with the presiding officer, prove their credentials and cast their vote on ballot papers.

Election officials said residents have the right to demand that they be allowed to cast a `tendered' vote.

These votes, howevser, will be taken into consideration in the final tally only if there is a tie in the contest. Nevertheless, a high number of `tendered' votes in any booth can serve as an indicator of the extent of bogus voting.

Another vote that could come into play on Monday is the `challenged vote.'

"The polling agents of the political parties are entitled to question the validity of any voter after checking the electoral rolls. If a query is raised against any voter, the presiding officer is entitled to conduct an enquiry on whether the voter is genuine or not. If found guilty of trying to cast a bogus vote, the person will be handed over to police," the District Election Officer for Chennai, M.P. Vijayakumar, said.

Chennai has more than 25 lakhs voters in its 14 Assembly constituencies, according to the electoral rolls published in February this year. More than 2.4 lakh persons were added to the rolls during the summary revision done earlier this year.

Election officials on Sunday distributed the election materials, including the Electronic Voter Machines (EVMs), from the strong rooms in 14 distribution centres to the polling stations amidst tight security.

Senior officials said the polling staff had started reporting at the polling stations since afternoon. Additional security had been arranged at 46 sensitive booths.

In North Chennai, the State's largest constituency in terms of the electorate size, 72 mobile parties will maintain vigil, its returning officer and Chennai Collector M. Rajaram said. Villivakkam, the largest Assembly constituency, will alone have 30 mobile parties doing the rounds.

Mock polls, to run a final check on the EVMs, will be conducted by the election staff at all polling stations by 6 a.m. on Monday. Polling will commence at 7 a.m.