Residents boycott polls in two villages
Residents of Chennampatti and Peikulam in Madurai district, which come under the Virudhunagar Lok Sabha Constituency, on Friday boycotted the Lok Sabha polls.
The residents said that their only demand seeking the closure of an industrial unit in the nearby Avalsurampatti in Kalligudi was not met. While no votes were polled in the two villages with over 1,000 votes each, in the nearby villages like Odaipatti, Melapatti and Solampatti which also joined the boycott, less number of voters had turned up to cast their votes later in the evening.
K. Chandramohan, a farmer from Chennampatti, said that despite repeated complaints to the authorities no action was taken by them. He alleged that there was burning of waste materials and this had aected the local residents.
He said that many people from the area suered from health issues due to burning of waste materials. It also contaminated the groundwater. He said that they had staged demonstrations seeking the closure of the unit. However, the authorities did not take any action.
Another farmer S. Munipandi of Peikulam said that the villagers collectively took the decision as the authorities did not pay heed to their demands. He said that this was their only demand and only if it was met they would cast their vote.
Earlier, the police and revenue ocials tried convincing the residents to exercise their franchise and told them that the issue would be taken up after the polls. However, the residents were strong in their decision. With no voter turnout throughout the day, the two polling stations wore a deserted look.