Election officials seize stainless steel utensils, saris, unaccounted cash in Vellore, nearby districts

Election officials and the police seized 300 stainless steel utensils, dhotis and saris, unaccounted cash to the tune of over ₹20 lakh during vehicle checks at various spots in Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur, and Tiruvannamalai districts on Sunday as part of enforcement of Model code of conduct for 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

The police said that members of a Static Surveillance Team (SST) led by election officer K. Vinod intercepted a van near the police check post at Somasipadi village near Polur in Tiruvannamalai district around 6 a.m on Sunday. During the check, the team found 300 stainless steel utensils.

Police said that along with a driver, a wholesale dealer from Vellore K. Satyanarayanan, 53, was carrying the utensils to retail outlets in Chengam town in Tiruvannamalai for sale when the election team intercepted the vehicle. As he was unable to produce valid documents, the seized items were handed over to the district treasury.

In a similar incident, election officials seized new dhotis and saris worth ₹82,000 near Arcot town in Ranipet after election officials got an alert that the items were being distributed to residents in the area by some political party functionaries.

In terms of unaccounted cash, election officials seized ₹13.06 lakh in two spots near Gudiyatham town in Vellore on Sunday after a team stopped two vehicles from Karnataka and Telangana where the occupants were heading to Kancheepuram to buy silk sarees for marriage functions in their native place. As they did not carry valid documents for the unaccounted cash, the seized money was handed over to the district treasury.

In Tiruvannamalai district, election officials also seized ₹6.80 lakh unaccounted cash from traders who were travelling in a car during a surprise check near Polur town.

In Tirupattur, election officials seized 500 plastic buckets worth ₹1.2 lakh during a vehicle check at Pachakuppam village near Ambur town in the district. The vehicle was proceeding from Gudiyatham to Tirupattur town.