Electronic voting machines and voter verifiable paper audit trail units used in the Dharapuram assembly byelection in Tamil Nadu’s Tirupur district have been secured in a sealed strong room under two-tier armed protection and round-the-clock CCTV surveillance ahead of counting on October 9, election officials said.
The machines were transported to the counting centre at LRG Government Women’s Arts College after polling ended on October 6. District election officer and collector Dr Manish Narnaware and election general observer Chinmay Pundlikrao Gotmare supervised the placement of the EVMs and VVPAT units in the strong room on Wednesday in the presence of contesting candidates and their agents.
The strong room was sealed after the machines were deposited. Superintendent of Police Srishti Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police Akash Joshi and Dharapuram Revenue Divisional Officer A Felix Raja were present during the sealing process, according to the district election authorities.
Narnaware said the strong room would be opened on October 9, the counting day, in the presence of candidates or their representatives and the central observer. The opening process will also be conducted under videography, officials said.
The security arrangement includes armed personnel deployed in two tiers around the strong room. CCTV cameras are monitoring the facility continuously, with election authorities putting in place a separate administrative system to supervise the feeds and maintain oversight until counting begins.
Three officers of deputy collector rank have been deployed at the district level each day to ensure uninterrupted monitoring of the CCTV feeds. Additional monitoring officers have been appointed for the Dharapuram assembly constituency. The surveillance and security arrangements will remain in place until the counting process starts on October 9.
Election authorities said all contesting candidates had been informed in writing about the option of appointing representatives to observe the security arrangements. Representatives have been permitted to remain outside the inner security cordon, allowing candidates’ sides to monitor the process without entering the restricted area.
The arrangements follow polling across 320 booths in the constituency. Of the 2,23,306 registered voters, 1,79,214 cast their votes, producing a turnout of 80.25%, officials said.
The custody of EVMs and VVPAT units between polling and counting is a defined stage in the election process, requiring the machines to remain protected until they are presented for counting. In Dharapuram, the district administration has combined the sealed strong room, armed security, continuous CCTV monitoring, senior officer supervision and candidate access outside the inner cordon as part of that process.
The next formal milestone is the opening of the strong room and commencement of counting on October 9. Candidates or their authorised representatives and the central observer are expected to be present during the opening, which will be videographed.
