April 19, 2024 marked the fifth occasion in which Tamil Nadu had single-phase polling for the Lok Sabha election. Till the 1999 election, the State had polling in two phases. At that time, 21 constituencies went to the polls on September 11, and the rest six days earlier. As is the case now, voters had to wait for over a month for the results to be declared.
It was in 2004 that the State switched to polls in one phase. In the 2001 Assembly election, electors all over the State cast their vote on the same day. It was then that electronic voting machines (EVMs) were introduced throughout Tamil Nadu. Apart from other malpractices or shortcomings that characterised the elections till 1999, multi-phase polling gave room for the criticism that impersonation was carried out in a considerable manner.
Special visitors bussed in
This writer, on September 12, 1999, reported in The Hindu that “the Parliamentary election in the city [Chennai] saw bus loads of ‘special visitors’ coming from various parts of the State, amid fast spreading reports of bogus-voting.”
The news report also mentioned that “bogus-voting rose to a new ‘professional’ and organised high this year. Cadre-based parties had mobilised ‘experienced’ bogus voters from far-away places. This reporter found that some of the buses, which shipped in bogus-voters and were parked on the Marina, came from Vriddachalam and Chidambaram.”
It added that on Usman Road [in T. Nagar], four persons of the “Tiruchengode group” were caught by local people and beaten up before being handed over to the police. Allegations that the police and election officials connived at bogus voting led to tensions. When asked for comments, police officials said legal action could be taken only if “proper complaints” were made.
Concerned over such a report, the then Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Naresh Gupta, who died last year, had started working on single-day polling. Even though he was transferred a year later, the work done by him laid the foundation for the one-day polling for the 2001 Assembly election. Actually, even in 1991, the thought of holding single-day polling was entertained by the authorities in the State who had conveyed it to the Election Commission (EC) too. Then, CEO M. Ragupathy, while interacting with journalists, however, qualified it as “a suggestion” and said the decision rested with the EC because factors, including the movement of the law-enforcement machinery from one part to another, had to be given due consideration.
The idea of single-phase polling became acceptable in no time as invariably all the key political parties, during their meetings with EC officials, had begun urging them to complete the process in one day, be it for the Lok Sabha or Assembly election.
R. Thangathurai, a resident of Purasawalkam, who was on the poll teams of former AIADMK Ministers H.V. Hande and M. Thambi Durai, says two-phase or single-phase polling does not make any difference.
A former official of the State Public (Elections) Department explains that as for the State, the distribution of cash for votes is viewed as the major issue. Single-phase polling is one of the options that can tackle this problem effectively. The reason for having multiple-phase polling in States, including West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh, is the non-availability of the Central Armed Police Forces. Tamil Nadu’s better record in law and order is another factor that made the EC go in for the single-phase polling.
Massive exercise
To give an idea of the strength of the police forces required for the election, this time, the authorities drafted approximately 10,000 police personnel from the neighbouring Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, in addition to the 1.25 lakh-plus police force of Tamil Nadu, hundreds of Home Guards and ex-servicemen, and 190 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces.
In 2019, they drafted 160 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces, 1,13,006 State police and 51,197 non-police personnel, such as ex-servicemen, retired policemen, Home Guards, Fire Service and Forest Service personnel, and NSS and Youth Brigade volunteers. In all, around 1.7 lakh persons were deployed for security.
A three-layer security system has been put in place at 43 counting centres in the State for round-the-clock guarding of the EVMs. The first layer is manned by the Central Armed Police Forces, of which 15 companies have been provided by the EC. The second layer is managed by the Tamil Nadu Special Police or the Armed Reserve Police. The third circle, comprising the road, gate and peripheries, are managed by the local police.
All these figures exclude more than three lakh government officials on election duty. It is with such a massive mobilisation of the government employees that single-day polling is conducted every time in the State.
