Electoral fraud in Tamil Nadu? 25 foreigners held for voting in Assembly polls. How they were caught

The accused, carrying foreign passports, were intercepted by immigration officials and detained by the police after indelible ink was found on their index fingers.

Approximately 25 foreign nationals, including Sri Lankan, British, Indonesian, and Canadian citizens, have been arrested or detained at Chennai and Madurai airports after illegally casting votes in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

The accused persons, carrying foreign passports, were intercepted by immigration officials and detained by the local police after indelible ink (the mark of having voted) was found on their index fingers.

Legal proceedings under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and other laws have been initiated against them.

According to investigators, a majority of the suspects are Sri Lankan nationals.

Investigations revealed that despite holding foreign citizenship and not being Indian citizens, the accused had stayed in various parts of the State to allegedly exercise their franchise illegally, according to a PTI report quoting a police release.

Investigators suspect that many more foreign nationals who arrived during the election time could have voted and stayed back, knowing that the police were verifying their credentials during departure at airports.

Acting on intelligence that some foreigners were attempting to leave the country after voting, the law enforcement agencies alerted officials at Chennai, Madurai, and other airports. Most of the detentions occurred in Chennai.

Two foreign nationals were identified as having voted in the Union Territory of Puducherry.

While Tamil Nadu voted in a single phase on April 23, elections were held in Puducherry on April 9.

According to a report in The Hindu, a man of Indian origin, who obtained a British passport in 2015, allegedly voted in the Pattukottai Assembly constituency. He has been detained at the Chennai International Airport while attempting to board a flight to London.

Officials said a comprehensive report had been submitted to the Election Commission of India (ECI).

In 2025, immigration officials requested the ECI to remove approximately 100 names of foreigners of Indian origin from the electoral rolls after it was found that they owned electors' photo identity cards.

“This year too, the names of 60 foreigners were removed from the rolls. All these persons had foreign citizenship and fraudulent address claims for voting rights in India,” The Hindu report quoted an official coordinating with the ECI.

An overseas elector must be an India citizen who has not acquired citizenship in any other country, according to ECI rules. While non-resident Indians (NRIs) can register themselves to vote under Section 20A of the Representation of the People Act, they are required to produce an original Indian passport at the polling booth. Those who have renounced Indian citizenship are barred from voting.