86 per cent: Record voter turnout in Manipur

Guwahati: Amidst the charges of rigging and attempt to intimidate voters and election agents, the second and final phase of polling for Manipur Assembly elections came to an end on Wednesday. Manipur witnessed a record turnout of 86 per cent to decide the fate of 98 candidates in the fray.

The polling went off peacefully “barring a couple of stray incidents”, Election Commission director-general Sudeep Jain told reporters here.

Mr Jain said the polling percentage could go up as the figures were available for 75 per cent of the total 1,151 polling stations covering 10 districts of the northeastern state.

The number of people who turned up to vote in the remaining 25 per cent polling stations will be known later as these are located in far-flung areas where no means of communication is available, he added.

The opposition BJP has lodged complaint with the election commission accusing rigging and proxy polling at various polling stations of Ukhrul district.

Informing that NSCN (I-M) rebels were canvasing against BJP, the BJP candidate from Ukhrul in a letter to the district election officer said that his polling agents were not allowed to enter polling stations by some forces.

The political wing of the NSCN (I-M) has also summoned BJP activists to appear before them and clarify the reason for violating the dictate of NSCN (I-M)—- not to work for BJP during the elections.

Former MP and PDA candidate of Chandel also complained that most of the photo voter slips were snatched away by militants. He alleged that militants were in total control of elections.

Meanwhile, chief electoral officer Vivek Kumar Dewangan told reporters, “There were some incidents of violence in Tamenglong Assembly segment. But the incidents took place outside the polling booths. The police have taken appropriate action.”

Some cases of damaging of EVMs were reported in Chandel Assembly constituency but those EVMs were replaced with new ones within a short time, he said. “The damaging of EVMs will not damage the chips inside the EVMs and the votes polled will not be affected. So there is nothing to worry as we have replaced them with new EVMs,” the CEO clarified.

All eyes were on Thoubal, where chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh was seeking re-election as a Congress candidate in a five-cornered contest that also featured human rights activist and People’s Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRAJA) nominee Irom Sharmila and Bharatiya Janata Party’s Leitanthem Basanta Singh.

The polling was held in Chandel, Imphal East, Senapati, Tamenglong, Thoubal, Ukhrul districts also.