The Lok Sabha Assembly elections barely had an effect on the crowds witnessing the annual Temple Car procession, part of the Chithirai festival of the Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple, here on Thursday.

Crowds gathered as early as 5 a.m. to stand in line and pull the temple car parked on East Masi Street transported Lord Sundareswarar with Piriyavidai. A smaller car carrying Goddess Meenakshi followed at about 6 a.m.

Commissioner of Police S. Davidson Devasirvatham, Temple Fit person Karumuttu T. Kannan and Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments department Joint Commissioner N. Natarajan were among the first few to draw the temple car.

Devotees occupied the nook and corner of the four Masi Streets — the route which the temple car takes.

K. Srinivasan, a devotee from Melur, said that he would not be voting because the Election Commission refused to change the date of the poll. “For us, Goddess Meenakshi is first. If you will notice, many people will finish the ther festival in the morning and later go to see Lord Kallazhagar's Ethir Sevai happening at various points in the city,” he said. Devotees crowding around him, agreed.

Another devotee M. Sangeetha, however said that she would be rushing straight to her polling booth in Simmakkal after the car festival. P. Shalini whose polling station is in Munichalai said that the polling stations had only about 10 people between 8 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. because the crowds were watching the car procession.

People watching the festival from the buildings along the four Masi Streets were also seen throwing water on the devotees pulling the cars to give a respite from the heat and sweat.

As the ther entered the West Masi Street, crowds began enthusiastically dancing, beating drums and sounding the conch.

The Election Commission has extended the polling time by two hours for Madurai Parliamentary constituency alone.