Chennai, May 3 (IANS) The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Sunday raised concerns over possible law-and-order disturbances during the counting of votes for the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections scheduled for Monday, urging the Election Commission and police authorities to ensure stringent security arrangements across the state.

In a formal representation submitted to Chief Electoral Officer Archana Patnaik and the Director General of Police, DMK Organisation Secretary R.S. Bharathi said the party had received inputs indicating potential attempts to disrupt the counting process at designated centres and other sensitive locations, including political party offices.

“There exists a reasonable apprehension of large-scale law-and-order issues, which may seriously prejudice the conduct of a free and fair electoral process,” Bharathi said in the letter, calling for enhanced deployment of security personnel and coordinated preventive action across Tamil Nadu.

Addressing reporters at the party headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, Bharathi said the representation was made in advance to ensure prompt action by the authorities in the event of any complaints on counting day. He stressed that timely intervention would be critical in maintaining order and preventing escalation of tensions.

“We have urged the Election Commission to respond immediately to complaints raised at counting centres. In previous instances, there have been delays in action until later in the day. This time, swift response mechanisms must be in place,” he said.

Bharathi added that the party’s apprehensions were based in part on information circulating on social media, which suggested possible attempts to engineer disturbances during the counting process. He called for heightened vigilance and continuous monitoring by enforcement agencies to ensure that the situation remains under control.

At the same time, the DMK leader alleged that the Election Commission was functioning in a manner favourable to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), even as he maintained that the party was fully prepared to handle any situation that might arise.

“We are ready to face any challenge, but it is essential that no disruption affects the integrity of the counting process,” he said.

Expressing confidence in the electoral outcome, Bharathi asserted that public sentiment was strongly in favour of the DMK-led alliance and that the government led by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin was poised to secure a second consecutive term.

–IANS

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