Bribery charges surge a day ahead of polls

Coimbatore: With just a day to go before the poll, allegations and counter allegations of bribing of voters flew thick and fast in Coimbatore.

On Saturday, seven cases of model code violations were booked in Coimbatore district, one of which pertains to bribing of voters. Police said two men, allegedly from AIADMK, were giving away cash to voters at Valparai. The flying squad got a tip off around 11 am and rushed to the spot. When the election squad reached the spot, two men possessing Rs 2000 cash and booth slips were found. They were apprehended and arrested.

Police said that they had registered 21 cases of election code violation from May 10 of which seven were on Saturday alone. At Pollachi, three cases were registered on BJP and AIADMK men for taking out a procession without permission. Police said that of the 21 cases, five were connected with bribing of voters.

"A man wearing a white shirt and a dhoti was spotted dropping envelops inside the compound of each house on Saradha Mill Road. When we opened the envelops, there was cash of Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 in each depending upon the number of voters in the house,'' said a resident. The dhoti-clad man had apparently dropped the envelops in all houses in Muthaya Nagar to Noorabad in Podanur falling under Kinathukadavu constituency on Thursday night, he said.

At Town Hall, in Coimbatore South segment, some of the residents said they were given Rs 500 per vote. "Two men from a Dravidian Party came to our house offering Rs500 per vote. There are two voters in my family," said a Sivananda Colony resident.

At Singanallur, the residents said some of them were given t shirts by a political party, but no cash was given while in Pappanaickenputhur, an AIADMK man was caught while allegedly giving money to voters.

However, voters in Thondamuthur were disappointed that they had not received any of the money reportedly being distributed. Voters across places like Kurumbapalayam, Kalikanaickenpalayam, Madhampatti and Sundapalayam said no one came to offer money. "We keep hearing that they are giving 500 and 1,000 to voters. But nobody ever comes to give us money. We are waiting," a mason said.An elderly firewood picker Viraliyur rued that their locality was left out every election. "It is not just this time, none of the parties gave us money even during the last two polls,'' he said.