Polling was disrupted for nearly an hour at a booth in Kolinjivadi near Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu’s Tirupur district after an election officer allegedly directed an elderly woman voter to press the whistle symbol assigned to Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), according to a PTI report. The Election Commission subsequently removed the officer and appointed a replacement at the polling station.
The officer, identified as Thangamani, allegedly instructed the voter to cast her ballot for the TVK symbol. Political party agents and local residents protested after the incident, leading to a temporary halt in polling at the booth. Dharapuram police intervened and pacified the crowd, while voting remained suspended for nearly an hour.
Following an investigation into the complaint, the Election Commission ordered Thangamani’s immediate removal from election duty. Rajammal was appointed as the new election officer for the polling station, and voting resumed under her supervision, the report said.
More than 100 police personnel were deployed at the site to maintain order and prevent further incidents. The deployment followed the disruption and protests involving political representatives and residents around the polling booth.
The incident placed the conduct of polling staff at the centre of the bypoll administration in Dharapuram. Polling officers are responsible for managing the voting process at booths, including guiding voters on procedure without influencing their choice. The reported direction to press a particular party symbol triggered the complaint and subsequent administrative action.
The disruption occurred as polling was under way for the Dharapuram and Madurantakam Assembly bypolls in Tamil Nadu. Officials said polling across the two constituencies remained peaceful apart from the incident at the Kolinjivadi booth.
Turnout was recorded at 80.31% in Dharapuram and 85.99% in Madurantakam, according to the report. Polling in both constituencies ended at 6pm.
The Election Commission’s immediate replacement of the officer allowed voting to resume at the affected booth. The next steps in the process will include the completion of election procedures for the two bypoll constituencies and the counting of votes according to the notified schedule.
