Re-Polling In Tamil Nadu After Annamalai Claims 1 Lakh Names Missing In Voters' List? EC Reacts

Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo has said that it has not recommended a repolling in any of the booths in the state.

His response comes after Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai alleged that over 1 lakh names went missing in voters' list in Coimbatore. The single-phase voting for 39 Lok Sabha seats was held in Tamil Nadu on Friday.

"Elections for all 39 parliamentary constituencies in Tamil Nadu were held in one phase. The public voted in 68,321 polling centres. Voting took place very peacefully in all polling stations across Tamil Nadu. No re-polling will be conducted in any polling station in Tamil Nadu," Sahoo said.

The polling was largely peaceful in the state."All the voting machines are kept safe in the strong rooms in the respective constituencies. There are 4 tiers of gun-toting policemen, including paramilitary personnel, who are engaged in 24-hour security."

Annamalai on Saturday demanded repolling in the state. "We don't know how the names went missing. In one polling booth in Coimbatore city, 832 voters have been removed from the list. Though this happens in all elections, we have not come across such mass deletion of names," the state BJP chief said.

He claimed that the names of the BJP workers went missing in all assembly constituencies. Annamalai stated, "The name of the husband is there in the list, but the name of his wife is missing. There are at least 20 names missing in each polling booth," he said.

"We are requesting a repoll in polling stations where a large number of voters' names were missing," Annamalai added.

The BJP leader accused both the DMK and the AIADMK of "bribing" voters while claiming that the saffron party has not distributed money.

"We have participated in this election with righteousness. Coimbatore people are aware of it. If a single voter from Coimbatore accuses us of bribing them for vote, I will quit politics immediately," Annamalai claimed.