VELLORE: Even as preparations were in full swing for the Vellore Lok Sabha polls today, criminals targeted a polling booth centre near Gudiyattam and stole CCTV cameras, computers and related equipment in the wee hours of Sunday.
The centre, located in the Kondasamuthiram Panchayat primary school, has three booths (29, 30 and 32), and comes under the KV Kuppam Assembly Constituency.
Election officials installed the cameras only recently, to monitor and supervise the election processes. “Eleven computers, a copier machine, modem and projector have been stolen from the school and CCTV cameras from the booths,” an officer said.
Police were alerted by the local people, who saw the school door open on Sunday. It’s not known if there is any political connection to the crime.
Meanwhile, the tension in the political camps was palpable as pundits are predicting a photo finish. AIADMK’s AC Shanmugam (Puthiya Neethi Katchi founder) put up a spirited fight to reenter the Lok Sabha from Vellore, from where he won way back in 1984. Meanwhile, DMK is hoping its strongman Durai Murugan’s son Kathir Anand would increase its strength in Delhi.
All eyes are on the minority communities, especially Muslims, who are in large numbers in the constituency. DMK is pinning its hopes on minority votes, while AIADMK leaders also say the mood has changed in their favour since April.
The constituency, with about 14.32 lakh voters, has presence of Dalit and Vanniyar communities too, who could sway the verdict. Since 1951, the Congress has won the segment 6 times, DMK 5 times and AIADMK and PMK twice each.
Shanmugam is hopeful of a big win. “People believe I can deliver,” he says. “Their expectations have only gotten bigger.” Kathir Anand, meanwhile, says people have already decided to make his party win. “They have been suffering without development for the last 5 years.”