Tamil Nadu Elections 2021 Live News: ‘Gifts’ for voters continue to pour in

Voting for 234 assembly seats in Tamil Nadu, 30 assembly seats in Puducherry began at 7am and it will continue till 6pm.

He may have been an accidental chief minister, but the AIADMK’s future and, to a large extent, its survival after the assembly election depends largely on Edappadi K Palaniswami. EPS’s performance as chief minister has come in for praise with even his adversaries grudgingly admitting that it could strengthen his poll scorecard. The behind-the-scenes tug-of-war with his deputy and AIADMK coordinator O Paneerselvam, however, has been a spoiler. The dual leadership has made the fight tougher for EPS. After the first big hurdle of winning an election, there would be the bigger battle for the Jayalalithaa legacy. And those jumping into the boxing ring include, besides EPS, OPS and V K Sasikala – perhaps through her nephew T T V Dhinakaran. EPS’s political relevance depends on his winning a sizable number of seats in the gounder-dominated western region, especially the 11 constituencies in Salem district, including his own Edappadi. With the 10.5% vanniyar quota tucked under his belt, victories in the northern vanniyar-dominant terrain are crucial for him.

Two AIADMK workers were arrested for attacking DMK workers in a private hospital at Thiruvottiyur on Sunday. The AIADMK men barged into the hospital and attacked the DMK workers who were undergoing treatment there. The arrested two have been remanded in jail. Police said the DMK workers stopped AIADMK workers suspecting that they were distributing cash for votes in a neighbourhood of Thiruvottiyur. Soon, a clash broke out between the two factions and the injured DMK men were admitted to a private hospital. Later, in the night, a group of AIADMK men barged into the hospital, and attacked the DMK workers.

All polling booths in the state will be sanitized and safety measures against Covid-19 have already been put in place to ensure safety of voters, health secretary J Radhakrishnan said. As per guidelines from the election commission, the health department has provided bottles of hand sanitizers – 500 ml and 100 ml bottles – which will be placed outside all booths. Officials deployed for election work will be given protection gear such as face shield and surgical face masks. “ All measures to ensure safe polling have been completed. We urge all voters to come to the polling stations with masks and not expect for one at the polling station. Masks should be worn properly covering the nose and mouth,” said health secretary J Radhakrishnan. He said voters should follow Covid appropriate behaviour. The district election officers will ensure physical distancing at the venues. In addition to hand sanitizers voters will be given single disposable glove before they cast the vote. The department has arranged for infrared thermometers that will be used by election staff at the entrance. “Those with high temperature will be asked to come between 6 and 7pm to cast their vote.” The state has also stocked up on PPE kits for Covid patients who will visit the booths for an hour after 6pm to cast their votes. The patients, who are medically fit, to visit the polling booths will have to wear protective gear. The booths will also have bins for safe disposal of PPEs and gloves, he said.

Seeing an old woman washing clothes on the roadside during his campaign in Aravakurichi, BJP candidate K Annamalai stopped his vehicle. He explained to her that she doesn’t have to strain herself in this old age. If she votes for BJP, she will get a free washing machine, he said pointing to the AIADMK poll manifesto. Making his debut in electoral politics from his native Aravakurichi, the BJP state vice-president is quite popular among those in the fray. But he knows well that reaching out to the electorate in Aravakuirchi with mere BJP identity may not be enough to counter the well-established DMK. He doesn’t hesitate to project himself as an AIADMK candidate though. He was in fact asking people to vote for lotus symbol this time considering it to be two-leaves. DMK has fielded Monjanur P R Elango, a new face, but his father Ramasamy was a former MLA of Aravakurichi and was instrumental in bringing Cauvery water there. He was handpicked by DMK Karur district in-charge V Senthil Balaji who won the segment on both AIADMK and DMK tickets. The 3 cents of free land promised by Balaji to 25,000 families without houses was instrumental in his victory in the 2019 byelection. He could smartly put the blame on the ruling AIADMK for preventing him from implementing the scheme. He has been asking Aravakurichi to vote for the future ruling party DMK as only ruling party can implement the scheme.

As expected, it is raining money in Chennai a day before the assembly polls. Despite intense checks by police and the Election Commission, cash distribution was rampant, particularly in the suburban areas of Chennai. Political parties not only distributed currency notes but also transferred money through digital wallet platforms such as Google Pay and Paytm. Ward-level party workers had collected mobile numbers of a section of people, likely to vote for them, two weeks ago and money was transferred from multiple accounts to avoid the attention of banks. Besides this, in Thiruvottiyur and Royapuram areas, parties gave coupons to voters, which they can exchange for household articles in local shops. This includes ration items up to Rs 2,000.

Despite acting in two unremarkable movies and a popular television serial between his first electoral defeat in 1984 and the first victory in 1989, Stalin has been stiff in front of the camera for the DMK’s campaign commercials this time. And then, on April 2, income tax officials searched the houses of his daughter and some DMK leaders. Campaigning in Perambalur that evening, Stalin thundered at the BJP, which he said was behind the search: “Listen, Modi, I will not be scared. I’ve seen the Emergency. I am Kalaignar’s son.” Soon, the DMK social media campaigners cut a commercial using the raw footage of the speech. It was a hit. For Kalaignar’s son, winning this election is not just about becoming the chief minister – a post that many believe has been overdue for the DMK president; it is about proving that he is not just the rightful political heir to the DMK throne, but also its worthy guardian, the next southern satrap of secularism if not a rallying point for the national opposition. By winning the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Stalin proved that the prince is ready to be the king, now is the time for coronation.

Elections in Puducherry, which is currently under President's rule, is mainly between the Congress - Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) alliance and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) comprising All India NR Congress, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

AIADMK is contesting the poll in a pre-poll alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Paattali Makkal Katchi (PMK). PMK and BJP are contesting in 23 and 20 constituencies respectively in the 234-member Tamil Nadu assembly while the AIADMK has fielded its candidates for the rest of the seats.

Tamil Nadu will witness the polling for the assembly elections on Tuesday amid tight security in the state. As many as 74,162 personnel from Tamil Nadu Local & Armed Reserve (AR) Police, 8,010 personnel from Tamil Nadu Special Police (TSP) and 23, 200 personnel from the CAPF have been deployed for the elections, according to the Tamil Nadu Police.

Former chief minister J Jayalalithaa’s close aide and former general secretary of AIADMK, V K Sasikala, would not be able to vote in the assembly election on Tuesday as her name has been deleted from the voters’ list. The names of 18 others, who lived in Veda Nilayam, the residence of the former chief minister, have also been removed from the list.