Polls 2011: Election Commission reminds Tamil Nadu it can countermand polls-Apr 12, 2011

Polls 2011: Election Commission reminds Tamil Nadu it can countermand polls

Published: Tuesday, Apr 12, 2011, 22:56 IST

By DNA Correspondent | Place: Chennai | Agency: DNA

Amidst widespread reports of cash and gifts being distributed to voters in Tamil Nadu, the chief electoral officer has warned that the elections could be countermanded if electoral malpractices are proven.

“The election in some constituencies would be countermanded if the parties continue with their malpractices,” Praveen Kumar, chief electoral officer said on Monday.

If elections in Tamil Nadu get countermanded for malpractices, it will be the first of its kind incident in the state. Elections have been countermanded in the past following death of candidates.

Praveen Kumar said the commission can countermand the election even after polling. According to Kumar, till Monday, the EC has seized Rs33.11 crore from various constituencies. Also, goods such as sarees, dhotis worth Rs12.58 crore meant for voters have been seized.

“Countermanding of election is a corrective measure by the election commission to ensure free and fair election,” N Gopalaswamy, former chief election commissioner, told DNA.

He said countermanding could be resorted to if the election commission is convinced of electoral malpractices. “The entire polling process will be repeated once an election is countermanded,” he said.

As an example, he cited the 2004 general elections in Bihar’s Chapra. There was widespread booth capturing and rigging where Lalu Prasad Yadav (RJD) was pitted against Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the BJP, he said.

An official of the state election commission said during the Thirumangalam by election, each voter was paid Rs10,000 to Rs15,000 to make sure that the DMK candidate romped home with a big majority. However, the polls were not countermanded.
U Sagayam, Madurai collector said they have come across plastic tokens of various colours which could be swapped for gifts and cash. These could be exchanged from select super markets,” he said.

Sarees, dhothis, gas stoves, grinders etc were seized by the flying squads of the election commission. Besides, ambulances, courier boys, newspaper vendors, milk booths and even marriage halls are being utilized for distributing cash and gifts, he said.

“In some instances, party cadres have opened bank accounts in the name of rural voters and money has been transferred to the accounts,” said N Satyamoorthy, political commentator.