A carnival atmosphere reigned on the arterial roads of Chennai on Friday and traffic was brought to a standstill as the convoy of Chief Minister-designate Jayalalithaa rolled across the city.

Scores of enthusiastic party workers thronged the roads and their margins, eager to see their leader in person after many months. Vehicles were forced to crawl at a snail’s pace since morning and close to the time Ms. Jayalalithaa was due to pass through, all traffic was stopped by the police. Thousands of people were caught in traffic jams in the sweltering heat for hours.

Party supporters danced in the middle of the road, oblivious to the needs of other commuters. Ambulances struggled to make progress on roads choc-a-bloc with vehicles caught in bumper-to bumper gridlock. In one instance, the police made an exception for an ambulance that was trying to cross the area where Ms. Jayalalithaa was due to arrive. The section had been cordoned off, but the curbs were lifted to allow the ambulance to pass.