Doctored videos and cash-for-vote charges: Dharapuram bypoll turns murky as Tamil Nadu votes

Dharapuram, Oct 6: Tamil Nadu's high-stakes bypoll day turned murky on Tuesday as the TVK candidate in Dharapuram alleged that a video about her had been deliberately distorted, while her AIADMK rival accused the ruling camp of distributing money and gifts to voters. P Sathyabama, the TVK nominee for the Dharapuram (SC) seat in Tiruppur district, said the video released about her a day earlier had been distorted and misrepresented. "I did not speak like that. They are doing all this because I have a strong chance of winning. I will secure one lakh votes," she said after casting her vote, adding that from the beginning of the election, various things had been distorted and portrayed against her. AIADMK candidate Banumathi struck back with allegations of her own. She said that after the TVK came into the picture, money and gifts had been distributed in some places, and that she had alerted the flying squads, which carried out inspections at the respective locations. She also referred to a viral video claiming Rs 35 crore had been spent in the Dharapuram bypoll by the TVK, though she said she had not watched it and had no particular comment on it. "The Two Leaves symbol will definitely emerge victorious," she declared. The charges landed on a polling day already shadowed by trouble. A booth in Dharapuram was halted earlier in the day, and EVM and VVPAT glitches were reported at two polling stations in Madurantakam, the other constituency voting in Chengalpattu district. Both seats fell vacant after the resignations of Maragatham Kumaravel and Sathyabama herself, two defector MLAs whom the TVK renominated on its whistle symbol, a move the opposition has branded horse-trading. In Dharapuram, Sathyabama faces the DMK's Suganya, the AIADMK's Banumathi, the CPI's Lakshmanan and the NTK's Karthika. Counting of votes is scheduled for October 9. The bypolls are the TVK government's first electoral test, barely four months after it stormed to power promising a different political culture. On the evidence of Tuesday, the old playbook, doctored videos, cash whispers, flying-squad raids, is already in full use. The ruling party finds itself both the alleged victim and the alleged practitioner, and the voter is left to sort truth from theatre.