In the following sentence, one part may contain an error. Find out which part of the sentence has an error and select the appropriate option. If the sentence is free from error, select No error. That summer, elections were(A) / held at many a place(B) / without any untoward incident.(C) / No error(D)

Introduction / Context:
This is an error spotting question involving an idiomatic English expression, many a, and correct use of verb forms. The sentence talks about elections being held during a certain summer without any untoward incident. You must decide whether any of the labelled parts contain a grammatical error.

Given Data / Assumptions:
Sentence: That summer, elections were(A) / held at many a place(B) / without any untoward incident.(C) / No error(D).
Part A: That summer, elections were.
Part B: held at many a place.
Part C: without any untoward incident.
Part D: No error, to be chosen if A, B and C are all correct.
Assume standard formal English and correct idiomatic expression of many a.

Concept / Approach:
The phrase many a is a fixed idiom that takes a singular noun (many a place, many a time) but often has a plural sense. In this sentence, elections is plural and is correctly followed by were held. The prepositional phrase at many a place is idiomatic and acceptable. The expression without any untoward incident also follows standard usage. The approach is to verify each part and confirm that no correction is needed.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Inspect part A: That summer, elections were. The subject elections is plural, so the plural verb were is correct. The phrase that summer sets the time and is also fine. Step 2: Inspect part B: held at many a place. The passive verb held is correctly used with elections as the subject, and at many a place is a standard idiom meaning at many different places. Step 3: Inspect part C: without any untoward incident. The phrase untoward incident means unexpected or unfortunate incident, and without any untoward incident is a correct and common collocation. Step 4: Put all parts together: That summer, elections were held at many a place without any untoward incident. The sentence is clear, grammatical, and idiomatic. Step 5: Since no part contains an error, the correct choice is that the sentence has no error. Step 6: Therefore, you should select option D, No error.

Verification / Alternative check:
To check further, you can rephrase the sentence as During that summer, elections were held in many places without any untoward incident. The meaning remains unchanged, which suggests that the original idiomatic form at many a place is acceptable and does not need correction.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A is correct because elections were is the right subject verb combination.
Option B is correct because many a place is a standard idiom, and held at many a place properly follows were.
Option C is correct because without any untoward incident is a standard phrase meaning nothing bad or unexpected happened.

Common Pitfalls:
Many learners misinterpret many a and think it must be wrong because it takes a singular noun. In fact, this construction is standard and often appears in exam passages. Another pitfall is to change idiomatic phrases unnecessarily, but in error spotting questions, not every unusual expression is an error.

Final Answer:
The sentence is grammatically correct, so the answer is Option D (No error).