Activity muted at AIADMK office

The AIADMK office wore a deserted look on the last day of campaigning ahead of polling day. In the morning, the corridors of the AIADMK headquarters in Royapettah were empty, except for a few workers and members of the party's legal wing. By evening, all functionaries were out campaigning till the last minute.

Party workers TOI spoke to, had mixed emotions. While some partymen seemed anxious about the results, others were more than confident of achieving a majority. "We have done all that we can. I wonder if we will get a majority. DMK is bribing voters across the state," said Balaji, a functionary. At the AIADMK headquarters, a member, who handled the arrangements for general secretary J Jayalalithaa's campaign rallies across the state, said, "Though a lakh or more people attended the rallies, there were twice the number of people waiting outside the venues to enter. All they wanted was to catch a glimpse of Amma."

He added: "We will win hands-down, like we did in the Lok Sabha polls. Everyone needs alliances, we are the only one contesting on our own strength." AIADMK Rajya Sabha MP and legal wing secretary A Navaneethakrishnan was at the party office in the morning to draft a letter to the chief election commissioner and TN Chief Electoral Officer (TN CEO) Rajesh Lakhoni regarding an incident in Pallathur in Sivaganga district on Friday night.

"I faxed the letter to CEO and handed it over to TN CEO. We have complained against Karaikudi deputy superintendent of Police Muthamizh, seeking his transfer as he did not arrest DMK workers who attacked our cadre and did not allow us to file a complaint," Navaneethakrishnan told TOI.

Navaneethakrishnan said that DMK workers threw stones at AIADMK workers in Pallathur and alleged that the policeman's actions seemed to indicate that he was supporting the DMK.

"Our workers Manickam and R A Kannan were injured. When AIADMK MP P R Senthilnathan, who was campaigning in Karaikudi reached there, hearing about the incident, they attacked him too. He suffered a head injury," Navaneethakrishnan said.

He alleged that DMK workers blamed AIADMK cadres for putting out an obscene video of former minister and Tiruppattur DMK candidate K R Periyakaruppan, which went viral on social media last week.

Activity was also muted outside the chief minister's Poes Garden residence, where she is believed to have spent the day.