Despite several attempts by Tamil Nadu Election Commission for 100 per cent voting the voters turnout was low.
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The main fight in the Tamil Nadu Assembly election is expected to be between DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) and the AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) – the current ruling party in the state.
The state polls will also see whether the ruling national party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), will be able to extend its influence and support outside its traditional Hindi belt.
In Kerala, the figures available till 6 pm said that 71 per cent of the total electors had cast votes.
In two Assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu – Thanjavur and Arvakurichi – the Commission has directed that the elections be postponed to May 23 after it emerged that political parties were using money and other illegal gratifications to woo voters.
In Kerala, where 140 seats are up for voting, around 26 million voters exercised their franchise to elect a new government in the state now ruled by the Congress party and its allies.
Not one to be pulled down, BJP Chief Rajasekharan says his hopes for more than 70 seats have not been “dimmed”.
Election authorities have seized more than Rs 100 crore unaccounted cash in the state, the largest among the five states involved in the Assembly polls.
In another development, the AIADMK and the DMK have submitted an email response to the showcause notices issued by the Election Commission about the violation of its guidelines on promises of freebies as made in the manifestos of the two parties.
Over 63.3 percent polling percentage was recorded in the state at the end of eight hours.
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For Chennai and its neighbourhood, the bulletin said that sky is likely to be partly cloudy. Marxist leader Achuthanandan, whose Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) heads the Left Democratic Front (LDF), was equally confident. Voting will take place in 930 polling stations spread over four regions of the Union Territory. The third front has the DMDK, CPI-M, CPI, VCK, TMC and MDMK.
