The Election Commission has ordered an investigation into allegations that foreign nationals illegally voted in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections held on April 23. The move came after police arrested ten foreign nationals who were allegedly involved in fraudulent voting using fake Indian identity documents. The arrests were made after airport officials noticed indelible ink marks on their fingers while they were preparing to leave India for foreign destinations.

According to officials, the accused were detained at Chennai and Madurai airports in separate cases. Airport authorities became suspicious after spotting the ink marks, which are usually applied to voters after they cast their ballots. The officials immediately informed the police, leading to further questioning and investigation.

The Chennai police said that ten foreign nationals were arrested in nine different cases linked to the Tamil Nadu 2026 Assembly elections. During the enquiry, police found that the accused were citizens of Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom and Canada. Investigators believe they managed to cast votes by using fake Indian identity documents.

A police official said, “They had used fraudulent Indian ID documents to cast the votes. The indelible ink was noticed on their fingers when they attempted to fly out.” Following the discovery, the Central Crime Branch registered multiple cases and began a detailed probe into the matter.

Officials said the Election Commission took the issue seriously because voting rights in India are limited to Indian citizens. Under the existing rules, overseas electors are allowed to vote only if they remain Indian citizens and have not taken citizenship of another country. Authorities are now trying to determine how the accused obtained the fake documents and whether any larger network was involved in helping them vote illegally.

The police also clarified the rules related to overseas voters. According to Election Commission guidelines, an overseas elector must be an Indian citizen who has not acquired citizenship in another country. People who have officially renounced their Indian citizenship are not allowed to vote in Indian elections.

Officials explained that Non-Resident Indians can still register as voters under Section 20A of the Representation of the People Act. However, they must follow strict verification rules. An NRI voter is required to produce the original Indian passport at the polling booth before being allowed to cast a vote. Investigators are now examining whether these rules were bypassed with forged or manipulated documents.

The incident has raised serious concerns over voter verification and election security during the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Authorities are now looking into whether there were lapses during identity checks at polling booths. The investigation is also expected to focus on how the accused managed to obtain fraudulent documents that appeared valid enough to allow them to vote.

The Election Commission has not yet released details about the scale of the alleged fraud or whether more people could be involved. However, officials indicated that the matter is being treated as a serious violation of election laws. The probe is likely to involve coordination between election authorities, local police and immigration officials.

Meanwhile, the arrests have triggered political and public discussions over the need for stricter scrutiny of voter identification processes. Officials are expected to review the existing verification system to prevent similar incidents in future elections. The police investigation is currently underway, and further action will depend on the findings of the enquiry.