Tamil Nadu Urban Local Body Elections: Single-phase Polls Tomorrow, Here Are Do's and Dont's for Candidates, Voters

The campaigning for the single-phase urban local bodies elections across Tamil Nadu, scheduled for February 19, came to an end at 6 pm on Thursday. Polling will start at 7 am on Saturday. 21 municipal corporations, 138 municipalities and 489 town panchayats are going to the polls. Over 12,800 posts are to be filled through the elections. The counting of votes is scheduled for February 22.

In a first, the Greater Chennai Corporation will be headed by a woman from the Scheduled Caste (SC) with the Tamil Nadu government reserving the Mayoral position of the civic body to women from the community.

Besides GCC, the newly-created Tambaram Corporation has also been reserved for an SC woman, while the nearby Avadi Corporation is earmarked for SC (General) category.

Candidates from diverse backgrounds have entered the fray for the urban local body polls, including tech-savvy youth, veteran social activists, nomads and transgender candidates. While nonagenarian Kamakshi Subramaniyan, aged 94, is contesting from Besant Nagar in Chennai as an independent candidate, Ganga Nayak, Secretary, South Indian Transgender community is contesting as a DMK candidate from ward 37 of Vellore Municipal corporation.

The Tamil Nadu State Election Commission issued a model code of conduct for local body elections in the state for both rural and urban areas.

Here are Dos and Don’ts for Candidates in Tamil Nadu Local Body Elections:

• Candidates are prohibited from engaging in activities such as forcing, intimidating voters or preventing voters from going to the polls.

• No notice, printed or handwritten are to be pasted near the polling booth.

• Candidates cannot set up election offices within 200 meters of a polling station.

• Voters can carry their Aadhar card, PAN card, passport or any of the below mentioned identity cards in case they do not have voter IDs.

• Candidates or their supporters should not engage in inappropriate activities that cause noise, shouting and confusion through the loudspeaker.

• No party or candidate or his agent shall indulge in any activity which may create or aggravate existing differences or create or aggravate mutual hatred or cause tension among different castes and communities, religious or linguistic groups.

• Candidates should not provide food, alcohol and drugs to voters on election day and are prohibited from providing vehicle facilities to the voters to go to the polls.

• Candidates should not hold public meeting or processions on the date of poll and during the period of 48 hours ending with hours fixed for the close of the poll.

• Assistants who come with disabled, visually impaired voters will be allowed inside the polling station.

• Candidate or their agents may give specific complaint or point out problems regarding the conduct of elections to “observers” appointed by the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission.

• Unnecessary crowd is not allowed near camps set up by political parties/ candidates near polling booths so as to avoid confrontation and tension among workers and sympathizers of the parties and the candidate.

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