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Brisk polling reported in Trincomalee district

[TamilNet, Friday, 02 April 2004, 07:24 GMT]
Brisk polling is reported from the clustered polling stations, which are located in Kattaiparichchan, and Mahindapura for voters residing the LTTE controlled Muttur east villages and Eachilampathu division in the Trincomalee district. Trincomalee District Returning Officer Mr. Gamini Rodrigo Friday noon said about seventy five percent of the uncleared area voters have exercised their franchise, sources said.


Mr.Sampanthan entering the polling station talking to a German journalist Mr.Willi Germund, South and South East Asia Correpondent of a German journal

He said in Trincomalee town area about fifty percent voters have exercised their franchise till noon and forty five percent in villages and other areas in the government controlled areas in the Trincomalee district.

2, 24,138 million voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the Trincomalee district in 267 polling stations. Fifteen polling stations have been established for voters residing in LTTE controlled areas in the district. Of them seven are located in Kattaiparichchan for 5656 voters in Muttur east villages and eight polling stations are located in Mahindapura for 4581 voters in LTTE Eachchilampathu division. Clustered polling stations for 2153 voters residing in LTTE held villages, Pattalipuram, Thangapuram, Srinivasapuram, Sinnakulam, Iththikulam, Pattalipuram, Veeramanagar, Nallur, Malamunthal are located Alhambra Vidiyalaym in Thoppur in the government controlled areas, sources said.

Hundreds of voters displaced from Thennamaravadi village Friday exercised their franchise for the first time after seventeen years. Thennamaravadi voters now residing in a temporary settlement called "Ponnagar" in Mulliayawallai in the LTTE controlled Vanni regions arrived in Trincomalee Thursday to cast their votes. The resettled voters in the Thiriyai village exercised their franchise in their soil after sixteen years, sources said.

In Trincomalee town the Tamil National Alliance leader and the lead candidate of the TNA in Trincomalee district Mr.R.Sampanthan exercised his franchise Friday morning at the polling station located at Trincomalee St.Mary's College.


Two monitors of the PAFFREL ( Peoples Action for Fair and Free Elections are seated inside a polling station in Trincomalee.


TNA leader Mr.R.Sampanthan casting his vote in Trincomalee


An old nun is being helped to climb steps to a polling station in Trincomalee

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