Activists in Coimbatore urge collector to postpone vote counting until probe is ordered into ‘cash for vote’ allegations

Coimbatore: Members of Marumalarchi Makkal Iyakkam on Saturday petitioned the district collector cum election officer to postpone vote counting until a judicial inquiry headed by a sitting or retired judge was ordered into allegations of distribution of cash to voters and cancel the election if the charges are proved. They also termed the vote counting process a "mockery of democracy".The activists arrived at the collectorate with their eyes, ears and mouths covered with a black cloth to signify what they called the "silence and inaction" of authorities. Police personnel stopped them at the entrance, removed the cloth and later allowed them to submit a petition. V Eswaran, president of the outfit, demanded that the Election Commission of India publicly acknowledge instances of money being distributed to voters before proceeding with vote counting. He said more than Rs1,000 crore had been distributed in Coimbatore district alone and claimed that complaints submitted constituency-wise had not received any response.