EPDP men injured in police attack during JMC election

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 August 2009, 11:43 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA), quoting police sources in Jaffna, said that Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) supporters who tried to forcibly enter a polling booth to vote in a school in Nayanmaarkaddu were injured in a clash when the police took action to stop them. Meanwhile, election officials said that 17.5 % to 18% of the total eligible votes may have been cast at the close of voting at 4:00 p.m and added that the accurate figures will only be available one hour after the ballot boxes are brought to Jaffna Secretariat.

Just before the close of voting, persons in many areas including Naavaanthu’rai and Kurunakar had tried to vote showing their Sri Lanka Army (SLA) identity cards instead of their National Identity Cards and when the police objected to this, clashes had erupted.

The police had brought the situation under control.

However, tension prevailed in the above areas following the clashes, sources in Jaffna said.

Soon after the close of voting the polling centres were hastily shut down and at the time of reporting the ballot boxes were being transported to Jaffna Secretariat for counting.