Notes for votes
On April 16, Vellore, a northern Tamil Nadu district abutting Andhra Pradesh, made electoral history when it became the first parliamentary constituency to have its election cancelled. This was because income-tax department officials found a Rs 10.48 crore stash of cash in a cement warehouse owned by a DMK activist. In bundles of Rs 200 notes, drawn from the Vellore branch of Canara Bank, the money was meant to bribe voters. Each bundle had been meticulously labelled with the wards and booths where it was meant to be distributed. The Election Commission charged Kathir Anand, the DMK candidate for the constituency, with furnishing false information in his election affidavit even as it cancelled the election.
India's 17th general election is the largest in human history with some 900 million people eligible to cast their votes. It is also one that has seen the most rampant use of illegal cash and contraband. As on May 6, vigilance agencies have seized cash, liquor, drugs, precious metals and freebies worth Rs 3,361 crore linked to the election.
This is only the tip of the iceberg, as the
