Imphal, April 17 (IANS): Around 74 percent of the 874,000 voters cast their ballot Thursday for the second Lok Sabha seat in Manipur, officials said.
An Election Commission official said polling took place peacefully for the Inner Manipur seat, and no untoward incident was reported. "Balloting was completely peaceful," he added. State Chief Electoral Officer Oinam Nabakishore Singh put the voter turnout at 74 percent till the end of polling.
Around 350 voters did not vote at a polling station, 125 km south of Imphal, in Bishenpur district till late afternoon accusing the authorities of not taking up development schemes in their area. "Later, after persuasion by officials, the agitated voters cast their ballot," the election official added.
About 78 percent of the total 911,000 voters in the tribal reserved Outer Manipur constituency cast their ballot April 9. Around 874,000 voters, including 448,000 women, were eligible to vote Thursday at 1,406 polling stations. Eight candidates, including a woman, are in the fray.
"Not a single untoward incident was reported in any of the four hilly districts - Imphal East, Imphal West, Bishenpur and Thoubal - where elections were held," the poll panel official told reporters. Police said a militant outfit asked people to boycott the polls, but people rejected the demand. "Balloting was absolutely smooth and peaceful," an official said.
Over 12,000 paramilitary troopers and state security personnel have been deployed for security. Once ravaged by terrorism, Manipur still suffers from militancy, and the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, (AFSPA) is a major issue, along with development.
Incumbent member Thokchom Meinya Singh of the Congress, Moirangthem Nara Singh of the Communist Party of India (CPI), and R.K. Ranjan Singh, a former Manipur University professor of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are the main contenders.
Meinya Singh, who is seeking re-election for the third consecutive term, defeated Nara Singh in 2009. The Trinamool Congress has fielded Sarangthem Manaobi, a former police officer. For security reasons, polling hours in Manipur are from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m, unlike in the other northeastern states where votes would be cast between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.
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No voters turn out in 4 Manipur polling stations
Newmai News Network
IMPHAL | April 17
IMPHAL | April 17
No voters turned out in four polling stations in Manipur Inner parliamentary constituency today.
According to an official source, in Bishnupur district's Oinam assembly constituency no voters turned out in the polling station number 25/1, 25/2, 25/3 and 25/4. A separate source said in these four polling stations the villagers of Leimaram and Heinoubok were supposed to cast their votes but the villagers were irked by the behaviour of the Officer Incharge (OC) of police of Nambol police station identified as one Premchand. The source said the villagers have been demanding the transfer of the police officer since the March 7 incident where a man attempted to rape a woman in the area.
When the furious villagers of Leimaram resented to the March 7 incident, the police officer allegedly abused the villagers with unpalatable words. This morning when the villagers saw the same police officer overseeing the polling stations in the area the villagers chose to remain indoors.
Meanwhile, the Chief Electoral Officer told the media that no re-polling will be recommended for the four stations as under such circumstance there is nothing under the ECI rule that favours for re-polling.
"This was not the case of booth rigging or booth capturing or something like that which fits to be recommended for the re-polling," stated the CEO. He further said the superintendent of police of the district and he himself had gone on learning the news and with pleaded the villagers to vote but to no avail.
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Militants under MoU fail to cast vote
IMPHAL, April 17 (NNN): Militant organisations under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) failed to cast votes today in the Inner Manipur parliamentary constituency in want of security. Except for KCP leader Nongdrenkhomba, no other militants under this category cast their votes. KCP leader Nongdrenkhomba was seen casting his vote in a polling station in Kumbi assembly constituency said a source. The source stated that the failure to provide security by the state government for these militants was the reason they could not go to their respective polling station for voting. There are seven militant groups under the category of MoU, which include URF, KYKL-MDF, KCP-Lamphel, UPPK, UTLA, KCP-Nongdrenkhomba and KCP-MC (Lallumba). Under this category, there 584 cadres.
IMPHAL, April 17 (NNN): Militant organisations under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) failed to cast votes today in the Inner Manipur parliamentary constituency in want of security. Except for KCP leader Nongdrenkhomba, no other militants under this category cast their votes. KCP leader Nongdrenkhomba was seen casting his vote in a polling station in Kumbi assembly constituency said a source. The source stated that the failure to provide security by the state government for these militants was the reason they could not go to their respective polling station for voting. There are seven militant groups under the category of MoU, which include URF, KYKL-MDF, KCP-Lamphel, UPPK, UTLA, KCP-Nongdrenkhomba and KCP-MC (Lallumba). Under this category, there 584 cadres.
