R K Nagar bypoll: Heavy polling in some booths, 'Traffic' Ramaswamy alleges assault attempt by AIADMK men

CHENNAI: R K Nagar constituency in north Chennai, where Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa is contesting, recorded 63.5% voter turnout till 4pm after polling began at 8am on Saturday.
Heavy polling was witnessed at some polling booths. In Korukkupet, voters were seen returning home without casting their votes as they didn’t want to stand in long queues.
READ ALSO: R K Nagar voters hope Jayalalithaa will lift their constituency out of neglect
Polling was delayed at two polling booths in Seniamman Koil Street, Tondiarpet, due to defects in the electronic voting machines (EVMs).However, polling resumed soon after officials rectified the issue.
There are also complaints about poor facilities for disabled and senior citizens at some polling stations. Many voters also complained that their names were missing on the voters list.
Meanwhile, independent candidate K R ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy alleged that AIADMK candidates blocked his vehicle at Tondiarpet and “tried to assault” him. Chennai Corporation councillor Anju Lakshmi was among the AIADMK cadres who blocked Ramaswamy's vehicle. Police helped Ramaswamy escape from the scene.
Lakshmi alleged that Ramaswamy was campaigning near the booth. "He is doing it for publicity," she said.
Talking to TOI, Ramaswamy said Election Commission and police officials were turning a blind eye to poll violations by the ruling party. "When AIADMK cadres, including the councilor, tried to assault me, the police, instead of taking action against them, asked me to leave the spot."
Vehicular traffic was affected in several places, and there was heavy deployment of police personnel.
As many as 28 candidates, including chief minister J Jayalalithaa, CPI candidate C Mahendran and ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy, are in the fray.
The election is likely to be a cakewalk for Jayalalithaa as major political parties boycotted the poll.

AIADMK cadres taking a differently abled man to a booth in Korukkupet (TOI photo by Christin Mathew Philip)
Confident AIADMK functionaries crisscrossed the constituency to attract the voters to increase the polling percentage.
The ruling party's workers were present in almost all the streets of the constituency.