Chennai: The Election Commission today released details of 13 booths where re-polling is to be held in Tamilnadu. The re-polling is taking place for parliamentary constituencies as well as where by-elections were held for the Tamilnadu Assembly.
The polling stations include those in Poonamallee, Tiruvallur, Pappireddipatti, Panruti, Andipatti, Kangeyam and Periyakulam.
The maximum number of booths where re-polling will take place is Pappireddipatti, where it will happen in 8 polling stations.
The order of the EC, signed by secretary Malay Mallick, says that wide publicity be given to the re-polling by beating of drums.
It also states that the political parties and the candidates should be informed in writing about the polling booths where re-polling is to take place.
Addressing mediapersons today at the Secretariat, Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo said re-polling was needed as the presiding officers in 46 polling booths in 13 districts forgot to either clear the votes polled in the EVMs during the mock poll immediately preceding the actual polling or the entry in the VVPAT or both.
“As this may lead to confusion during counting of votes, the situation was taken to the notice of the Election Commission of India following which re-polling will be conducted on 19 May,” he added.
Further talking about the shifting of the EVMs from Coimbatore to Theni, he said, “Only under direction from the ECI the unused EVMs and VVPATs were shifted from Coimbatore to Theni and Erode.”
“Coimbatore was used as a nodal point to store the EVMs which is why the machines were shifted from there. The shifting was informed to the political parties as well and standard procedure was followed,” he added.