Reports show several foreign citizens detained for allegedly voting in polls

Under the rules of the Election Commission of India, overseas electors are required to retain Indian citizenship and must not have acquired the nationality of another country.

While Non-Resident Indians are permitted to register as voters under the Representation of the People Act, they are required to produce an original Indian passport at polling stations.

According to reports, several foreign passport holders were stopped by immigration officials at airports in Chennai and Madurai after authorities noticed indelible ink marks on their fingers during departure checks. The crackdown operation had begun last week, Scroll.in reported.

Cases were registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Representation of the People Act and other laws.

Chennai Additional Police Commissioner A Radhika told The Times of India that first information reports had been filed following complaints from the Foreigners’ Regional Registration Office in Chennai. Police officials were also quoted as saying that the accused individuals had later been released on bail.

Investigators said that most of those detained were Sri Lankan citizens, while others held passports from Britain, Canada and Indonesia. Authorities alleged that many of them had arrived in India shortly after election dates were announced and stayed on after polling, possibly waiting for the indelible ink marks to fade before attempting to leave the country.

Polling in Puducherry took place on April 9, while voting in Tamil Nadu was held on April 23.

According to The Hindu, a senior official said authorities had conducted discreet inquiries before alerting airport officials, leading to the detention of around 25 to 30 persons as they prepared to board flights.

One individual of Indian origin who had reportedly become a British citizen in 2015 was accused of voting in the Pattukottai Assembly constituency. He was detained at Chennai airport while trying to board a flight to London.

Among the Sri Lankan citizens arrested were Ranjini, Sarfudeen, Nilanthi, Jeyanthan, Charlie Balachandran, Chakravarthy Logapriya and Sunitha Chakravarthy. Others included Ayyadurai, a British citizen, Indonesian citizen Tittin Mariatti and Canadian citizen Jitthendranath.

An official told The Hindu that a report had been submitted to the Election Commission. Investigators were also examining records of other foreign nationals who had entered India before polling day and had not yet departed.

The developments come amid a special revision of electoral rolls conducted by the Election Commission in 12 states and Union Territories, including Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

More than 74 lakh names were removed from Tamil Nadu’s electoral rolls during the exercise. The final voter list published in February showed the state had around 5.6 crore electors.

In Puducherry, the number of voters declined by over 77,300 following the revision exercise, reducing the electorate from more than 10.2 lakh to around 9.4 lakh, a net drop of 7.5%.

In the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam led by actor-politician Vijay emerged as the single-largest party with 108 seats, though it fell short of the majority mark of 118 in the 234-member Assembly.

The TVK later formed a coalition government with support from the Indian National Congress, Left parties, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and the Indian Union Muslim League.

In Puducherry, the All India NR Congress-led National Democratic Alliance won 18 of the 30 Assembly seats