The indelible ink used by the Election Commission of India is a crucial part of the famed Indian election (Reuters photo)

The permanence and durability of the indelible ink used during Indian elections has come into question with the start of the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Voting was held on Thursday, April 11, in 91 constituencies under Phase 1 of the seven-phase 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Towards the evening, allegations emerged that the indelible ink used to mark a voter's finger was not as indelible as advertised. Voters took to Twitter, posting photos and videos showing the purple voting stain easily coming off.

A Hyderabad-based journalist put up a short video last evening showing how she was able to remove the voting mark with what looked link nail polish remover.

In the video, she is seen applying the nail polish remover to her left forefinger which is seen inked at the beginning of the video. After rubbing the remover on her finger with a piece of cotton, the purple voting mark is seen coming off.

A similar post was put up by another journalist -- this one a prominent Noida-based editor. "I voted. I got inked. I did not believe the people who said that indelible ink is washing off. So I tried nail polish remover - and magic - the mark is gone," she tweeted last evening, along with photos showing an inked finger that was later cleaned to remove the voting mark.

This morning, she tweeted an update: "A faint mark has appeared by the next morning. But that does not take away from the worrisome vanishing while the polling was still on yesterday."

A national-level news anchor too faced the same problem. "What a day. First time I experienced this. The "indelible ink " of election commission , goes missing in exactly half hour," he said in a tweet, posting then-and-now photos showing a finger from which the voting mark had disappeared.

Similar complaints were made by a few other Twitter users as well.

The indelible ink used by the Election Commission of India is a crucial part of the famed Indian election. The ink is manufactured by the Mysore Paints & Varnish LTD.

The company, on its website, says the ink is manufactured in association with the Election Commission of India, National Physical Laboratory, Government of India, New Delhi, and National Research Development Corporation.

The ink is used to prevent voter fraud. A crucial element of this is the permanence of the voting ink -- once applied, the purple mark is supposed to stay for a few weeks, helping election officials identify citizens who have cast their votes.

IndiaToday.in has reached out to the Election Commission of India for comments on the allegations made on Twitter yesterday. The story will be updated if and when the commission responds.