"Lok Paritran will not win any seats. They infact will lose the deposit"..

"Though DMDK might not win any seats they will save their face by not losing their deposit"..

These talks are now common in chennai with the election D-Day getting closer. Till now if someone had asked me what is meant by "losing the deposit", I would have thrown a blank face. Not anymore.. Here's the answer for folks who are not aware of the term "losing the deposit".

A person contesting for an assembly election should pay Rs. 5000 as security deposit to the Election Commision. For a lok-sabha election it is Rs. 10,000.

Any defeated candidate who fails to secure more than one-sixth of the valid votes polled in the constituency will "lose his security deposit." (From Indian-Elections FAQ)

Note: If you find that some one else had casted a vote in your name, don't crib and complain. Ask the polling officer for a tendered ballot paper. (Be like "Rules Ramanujam" and explain Rule 42 of the coduct of Election Rules, 1961...More on this below.)

Q. If you go to your polling station and find that some body else has impersonated for you and already voted in your name, can you vote in such circumstance?

Ans. Yes

If a person finds that someone else has already voted in his name, then also he will be allowed to vote. But his ballot paper will be marked as a Tendered Ballot Paper by the Presiding Officer. This will be kept separately in the prescribed cover, as per Rule 42 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961.