Election officials seize 53 panchaloha idols, unaccounted cash in Vellore, nearby districts

Election officials and the police seized 53 panchaloha idols, 40 bags of biryani rice, unaccounted cash to the tune of ₹14.94 lakh during vehicle checks at various spots in Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur, and Tiruvannamalai districts on Wednesday. The checking was done as part of the enforcement of Model Code of Conduct for 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

Police said that members of a Static Squad Team (SST) led by election officer V. Rajendran intercepted a car near the police check post at Thalavaipuram near Kilpennathur town in Tiruvannamalai district around 1 a.m on Wednesday. The team found 53 idols made of panchaloha and other metals.

Police said that along with a driver, F. Uman Faroor, a native of Srinagar in J&K, was carrying the idols from Mamallapuram town near Chennai to sell them to visitors and devotees on the 14 km long Girivalam path near Arunachaleswara temple in Tiruvannamalai. As he was unable to produce valid documents, the seized idols were handed over to the district treasury.

In a similar incident, election officials seized 40 bags of biryani rice worth ₹80,000 from an autorickshaw in Kilpennathur. The autorickshaw driver was unable to produce valid documents for the rice. In terms of unaccounted cash, election officials seized ₹9.13 lakh in various vehicle checks at Vandavasi, Cheyyar, Polur, and Arani in Tiruvannamalai district on Wednesday.

In Ranipet district, election officials also seized ₹84,000 unaccounted cash from a furniture trader during a surprise check in Arcot town.