Unlike the usual fault in voting machines reported in other booths, residents in and around Alandur faced a different problem on Thursday. They were casting two votes - one for the Lok Sabha elections and the other for the by-election.
A few voters were confused at the polling station trying to know which machine was for what. Devinirmala, a senior citizen, who walked alone to the booth close to her house at New Colony, Adambakkam, said she felt slightly confused on seeing two EVMs kept in two places. “Though I had decided whom I should cast my vote for, I felt confused. I had to strain my eyes to read the candidate names and then learn which machine is for what. Though there were officials, nobody guided me,” she said after casting her vote at Prince School.
Though most of them were quite prepared for both the elections, some said that neither were signboards indicating which EVMs meant for which election nor were there any help forthcoming from officials at the booth.
“It gets worse if you are not sure about the candidates for both the elections,” said Karthikeyan, a voter.
While the problems existed only in a few booths, most of the polling stations either had signboards made of cardboard fixed in front of the table where the EVMs were kept or had booth officials guiding them.