Bypoll 20: AIADMK intensifies field work

The high profile Tiruvarur seat represented by DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi and Tiruparankundram the traditional bastion of AIADMK gets additional focus from the AIADMK. Ministers P Thangamani, MC Kamaraj and K Pandiarajan have also completed two rounds of discussions with party men to arrest the dissent and address inter-party issues.

According to highly placed official sources, the collectors through revenue and local administration created a list of projects last month. These are projects related to basic amenities like road repair, replacement of streetlights, repairing of government buildings like schools, noon meal centres, primary health centres and revenue offices. Administrative sanction for the projects has been cleared and the tender process is likely to be completed before Pongal. “Once when the tender is opened and the project sanctioned, the model code of conduct cannot hinder the ongoing projects,” a district administration official said. “The party has appointed senior officer-bearers and ministers to supervise the poll works and the party is now ready to face the elections. The preliminary works like verification of voters’ roll, micromanagement of poll campaign is already done. The party will work on its campaign strategies once the poll schedule is released,” a sitting AIADMK MLA said.

With the revenue department completing the delimitation exercise, a few AIADMK district secretaries have also explained to the party high command that they are ready for the civic polls delayed since 2016 due to litigations.

When contacted on the poll works, AIADMK leader and party joint convenor KP Munusamy said that the ruling party is ready for the bypolls. We have completed all the basic works and the booth committee meetings are over. AIADMK is confident of retaining the 18 MLA seats, the former minister said.

The Election Commission has extended the publication of revised electoral rolls to January 10 based on the request of many district election officers to complete the removal of demographically similar entries based on findings, Chief Electoral Officer Sathyabrata Sahoo told reporters here on Friday. ERONET, a software application introduced throughout the country shows pictures, names that are apparently similar and after field verification, such kind of matching names is retained in only one constituency which is done by the booth level officers. Due to the ongoing correction and based on the request, the publication of electoral rolls scheduled for January 4 will be delayed. In Tamil Nadu, about ten lakh entries with mistakes are now under scrutiny for an error-free final voters roll. The state public election department has requested time till January 10, the CEO said.