Mar 11, Colombo: Breakaway LTTE leader Karuna's political party, Thamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) emerged as the clear winner in the municipal elections held yesterday in the Batticaloa District in eastern Sri Lanka.

TMVP swept eight out of nine local councils while the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UFPA) won the Batticaloa Municipal Council with 11 out of 19 seats.

Despite the wide speculation of election violence the polls ended peacefully with about 57% registered voters casting their votes.

According to the Executive Director, Kingsley Rodrigo of the election monitoring group Peoples' Alliance for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFEREL) no election-related incidents had been reported by the time polls closed today. The government had deployed about 6,000 police and military personnel to provide security to the voters and prevent any incidents.

According to the electoral registry, 270,471 voters were eligible to participate in the election, the government said. Nine political parties and 22 Independent groups have fielded 831 candidates to fill 101 posts in nine Pradeshiya Sabhas and the Batticaloa town municipality.

The government sees the elections as a first step to restore democracy in the region. However, the main opposition United National Party (UNP) and the LTTE proxy party Tamil National Alliance (TNA) boycotted entering the polls saying that there is no favorable environment to hold elections while armed groups are contesting.