Unanimous election leaves residents of 2 Vellore wards upset

A sense of acute disappointment has gripped the 15,000 plus voters in two wards in Vellore corporation who cannot vote following political machinations resulting in DMK candidates being adjudged winners due to lack of any opposition candidate, sources said.

Wards 7 and 8 at Tharapadavedu have 7947 and 7941 voters respectively. A talk with some of the residents revealed disappointment, especially for first time voters.

Tamilarasi of ward 7 said “I was eagerly waiting for February 19 to cast my vote and was totally disappointed when elections were stopped for our ward with only one candidate being in the field.”

An elderly woman in the same area who refused to divulge her name said, “what is the use of democracy when we cannot vote and candidates are chosen through other means.”

In ward 8, Kumaresan, a shop keeper said, “There is no sense of victory for us even though a DMK candidate will represent the ward in the corporation council.”

Naganathan, another resident of the same area said “voting for assembly and local bodies is different. We cannot hold the MLA responsible for any lapses as we rarely see him. But we can always question ward councilors as we will know them personally.”