Chennai: Several candidates including DMK’s Central Chennai contestant Dayanidhi Maaran filed their nominations as today is the last day to submit the papers to contest in the Lok Sabha elections and by-poll for the 18 Assembly constituencies.
Filing of nominations began 19 March and sources said till yesterday 610 people including 83 women and two transpersons had filed their papers to contest in the Lok Sabha elections.
Similarly 232 candidates including 38 women have applied for the by-poll for the 18 Assembly constituencies. It is said more than 400 candidates filed their nominations yesterday alone.
With the scrutiny of the nominations set to take place tomorrow and the final list to be announced 29 March, the general election observers were expected to reach the state today.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission has bought 26 lakh election ink bottles at a cost of Rs 33 crore from the Karnataka Painting and varnish limited. During the last Lok Sabha elections 21.50 lakh bottles were bought.
In the meantime, the city police and flying squad seized cash and gold from several place in the city during vehicle checks. According to sources, Rs 14.5 crore worth gold and diamonds were seized from a van in Nelson Manickam Road at Choolaimedu early this morning.
Even as the vehicle was seized, the occupants of the van claimed that the articles were kept at an jewellery exhibition in the city and were being taken back to Delhi. It is said the seizure was returned after they brought the documents for the valuables.
At Royapettah, gold bars, diamond jewellery, expensive watches and other valuables worth RS 1.5 crore were seized without proper documents. Officials are conducting inquiries with two persons. At T Nagar, a van laden with unaccounted cash, Rs 9.69 lakh, was seized.