It was not just the summer rain that played spoilsport in the district on Monday. In several locations, faulty electronic voting machines (EVMs) delayed the voting and people had to wait in long queues till they were replaced with new ones.
"They told us that there was some technical glitch... something related to wiring of the machine," said an elector. Nearly 100 voters had to wait for over two hours at Sanganoor polling booth after the EVM didn't work. Many voters at Rathinapuri, Ondipudur and Vadavalli as well had to wait for an hour because of faulty EVMs.
Officials said EMs were checked for faults in advance but it was common that some of them develop technical glitch. "It was a minor wiring mistake. Polling resumed quickly," said an official.
The voters were, however, unhappy as they had to wait for over an hour to vote. "We wanted to cast our vote and leave the polling booth in 10 minutes. To wait in queue for such a long time was really frustrating," said an elector. Clashes also marred the polling day in some pockets of the city. Minor clashes between DMK and AIADMK men were reported in Sugunapuram and Kottaimedu. However, the situation was brought under control, thanks to the timely intervention of police officials.
For some, voting even turned fatal. Two people, including a booth official, died of heart attack on the D Day. Presiding officer of the polling station in Kangeyampalayam died at 11am while on duty. The deceased was identified as Selvaraj, 54. He was a government teacher at Udumalpet.
In another incident, a 53 year-old man died of hear attack while returning home after casting vote. The deceased was identified as K Balasubramanian, of Gokulapuram near Sundarapuram. The incident took place while was returning with his daughter Mythili after casting his vote. When the duo reached near Madukarai Market Road, Balasubramanian fell from his vehicle. He was taken to a private hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.
"They told us that there was some technical glitch... something related to wiring of the machine," said an elector. Nearly 100 voters had to wait for over two hours at Sanganoor polling booth after the EVM didn't work. Many voters at Rathinapuri, Ondipudur and Vadavalli as well had to wait for an hour because of faulty EVMs.
Officials said EMs were checked for faults in advance but it was common that some of them develop technical glitch. "It was a minor wiring mistake. Polling resumed quickly," said an official.
The voters were, however, unhappy as they had to wait for over an hour to vote. "We wanted to cast our vote and leave the polling booth in 10 minutes. To wait in queue for such a long time was really frustrating," said an elector. Clashes also marred the polling day in some pockets of the city. Minor clashes between DMK and AIADMK men were reported in Sugunapuram and Kottaimedu. However, the situation was brought under control, thanks to the timely intervention of police officials.
For some, voting even turned fatal. Two people, including a booth official, died of heart attack on the D Day. Presiding officer of the polling station in Kangeyampalayam died at 11am while on duty. The deceased was identified as Selvaraj, 54. He was a government teacher at Udumalpet.
In another incident, a 53 year-old man died of hear attack while returning home after casting vote. The deceased was identified as K Balasubramanian, of Gokulapuram near Sundarapuram. The incident took place while was returning with his daughter Mythili after casting his vote. When the duo reached near Madukarai Market Road, Balasubramanian fell from his vehicle. He was taken to a private hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.