Thiruvananthapuram, Sept. 17 :     Kerala chief minister E.K. Nayanar, who is normally given more trouble by his own comrades than by the Opposition, has this time managed to land in a mess all by himself. He has violated a very basic democratic norm by casting an ?open? vote on September 11, the day Kerala went to polls. A photographer caught the chief minister in the act just as he stamped on the ballot paper and lifted it up. The controversial vote was cast at the Kalliassery Polytechnic booth in the Kannur parliamentary constituency, north Kerala. The photograph, allegedly distributed by the state?s public relations department, appeared on the front page of a leading Malayalam daily the next day, accusing the chief minister of violating both the election rules and the Representation of People?s Act. The PR department, however, denied having anything to do with either the picture or the photographer. According to the daily, Nayanar voted for CPM candidate A.P. Abdullakutty and displayed the ballot to news photographers before dropping it into the box. The report and the evidence have created a furore in the state. An embarrassed Nayanar now finds himself under investigation by the Election Commission, which is sending deputy election commissioner Sian Chatterjee. If found guilty, Nayanar?s vote is liable to be cancelled and he may be fined up to Rs 500. Section 132 of the Representation of People?s Act specifies that if a voter ?refuses to observe the procedure the ballot issued to him shall be liable for cancellation?. Section 134 says a person guilty of a breach shall be punished with a fine. Surprisingly, no one objected to the chief minister?s action at the polling booth. The presiding officer, who has the right to cancel a vote in case of such a violation, did not even warn Nayanar. What?s more, even the Congress? polling agent did not protest. Had he done so, the presiding officer would have been compelled to act. Nayanar has hit back by demanding an inquiry into the newspaper?s report and the photograph. He has alleged that the report was fraudulent and the picture a fake. He demanded that the Election Commission take strong steps against the photographer and the officials who allowed him to enter the booth. He claimed that the ballot paper shown in his hand in the photograph was superimposed. Matters are spinning out of control as the Congress-led UDF has begun to demand Nayanar?s resignation. A senior UDF leader suggested ?since the chief minister has himself sought an inquiry into the issue, he should step aside to facilitate a proper probe?. A CPM source told The Telegraph that the photograph might be genuine but, at the same time, Nayanar did not flout the rules intentionally. According to the source, Nayanar stamped on the ballot and realised that the ink impression was not clear. He lifted up the paper only to explain this to the presiding officer. That was when the camera flashed.