Last phase of polling amid tight security
New
Delhi: The last phase of polling in 182 parliamentary
constituencies spread across 16 states and Union territories
began early this morning. An estimated 25.15 crore electorate
will seal the fate of 2,132 candidates with the help of
electronic voting machines. Prominent among those whose
electoral fate will be decided today are CPI-M veteran Somnath
Chatterjee, the Deputy Speaker in the dissolved Lok Sabha
PM Sayeed, Union Ministers Jagmohan, BC Khanduri, Mamata
Banerjee, SS Dhindsa, Satyanarayan Jatiya, Sahib Singh Verma,
I D Swami and Vijay Goel.
Voting
is taking place for 18 seats in Uttar Pradesh, 17 in Madhya
Pradesh, Udhampur and Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, besides
42 seats in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu (39), Kerala (20), Punjab
(13), Haryana (10), Delhi (7), Uttaranchal (5), Himachal
Pradesh (4) and one each in Lakshadweep, Pondicherry, Chandigarh,
Assam and Sikkim. Voting is also taking place for the 32-member
Sikkim Assembly.
Nearly
1.10 lakh Central forces have been deployed in addition
to local police to ensure a free and fair poll at 2,18,077
voting booths across the states and union territories going
to the polls. A major chunk of nearly 33,800 paramilitary
personnel will be put on poll duty in Udhampur Lok Sabha
constituency in the sensitive district of Doda in Jammu
and Kashmir. In the wake of allegations of poll irregularities
in several constituencies where political heavyweights are
in fray, the Election Commission has ordered videography
in five of the 18 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh. These
are Bulandshahr where former UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh
is contesting, Sambhal where SP Supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav's
brother Ram Gopal Yadav is in fray. Baghpat, the traditional
stronghold of RLD leader and former Union Minister Ajit
Singh, Badaun where former Minister Salim Iqbal Sherwani
is contesting and Meerut, a communally-sensitive constituency,
will also be under electronic surveillance.
Elections
were held in 361 constituencies in the earlier phases on
April 20, April 22, April 26 and May 5. Counting of votes
will begin on May 13 and results are expected the same day.
Extremists attack Doda polling stations
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Srinagar:
Militants opened fire and lobbed grenades from hill-tops
at two polling stations in Doda district today, as elections
got underway for the Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency in
Jammu and Kashmir. No casualty was reported in the attacks,
which took place in Baderwah area. The militants fired a
rocket-propelled grenade at a booth in Hali Nallah. The
grenade exploded in air without causing any damage. In the
Maloti area, militants opened fire from a hilltop at a polling
station at around 8.30 a.m. Security personnel posted at
the booth retaliated and both sides exchanged intermittent
fire but the polling was not affected. Security is on high
alert in various parts of the state after a series of pre-poll
violence on Sunday. A government information officer was
killed and 20 others injured when militants hurled a grenade
at their vehicle in Doda. Those injured include four policemen
and a local journalist. Militants also attacked a voting
booth in remote Udhayanpu area in Doda, wounding six people.
In the third attack, ultras hurled a grenade at a bus in
Udhampur town injuring five.
Strike paralyses voting in J and K (Go
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Srinagar:
A general strike called by several separatist organizations
has paralyzed the fourth and final phase of polling in Udhampur
and Ladakh constituencies. Shops, business establishments
and educational institutions in Srinagar and some other
major towns in the Kashmir Valley remained closed and traffic
was also off the road.
Akali shot in Ludhiana; violence in
Bengal (Go
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Chandigarh:
An Akali worker was shot dead at a polling station in
Ludhiana this morning even as the electorate cast their
votes during the first three hours of polling for 13 parliamentary
seats in Punjab. Jagpal Singh was shot at point-blank range
at Saholi village in Ludhiana district. The assailants escaped
without being identified. Voting was suspended for about
half-an-hour following the incident. In West Bengal, at
least one person was reported killed and several injured
in poll-related clashes.
Official
sources said a Congress supporter was killed in a group
clash with CPI (M) activists near Domkol in Murshidabad
district. Bombs and firearms were used during the clash.
Five Congress workers and two CPI(M) activists were injured
in the clash. CPI(M)'s district leader Jibon Moitra escaped
unhurt when some miscreants hurled bombs and opened fire
on his car at Bhagalpore village in Malda district. Trinamool
Congress candidate for the Bolpur seat Nirmal Majhi also
escaped unhurt when some miscreants attacked his vehicle
near Nannur in Birbhum district. A few Trinamool workers
were injured in the incident. In Kolkata's North East constituency
a CPI (M) party camp was burned down allegedly by Trinamool
cadres hours before the polling started.
Counting of votes in Andhra tomorrow
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Hyderabad:
Counting of votes polled for the 294 Assembly constituencies
in Andhra Pradesh will be taken up tomorrow amid tight security.
The counting process, involving more than 10,000 personnel
in 300 halls spread over 42 towns and cities in the State,
would begin around 7 a.m. Counting in each constituency
would take place in 14 rounds, with each round taking five
to 20 minutes. The electoral fate of 1,896 candidates is
at stake. Tight security arrangements have been made in
the counting centres to ensure smooth conduct of the massive
exercise. The first result, probably from Maharajgunj, the
smallest Assembly seat, is expected by afternoon and most
results were likely by evening, according to poll officials.
More than 69 per cent of the total electorate of a little
over 5.11 crore exercised their franchise during the two
rounds of polling in the State, held on April 20 and 26
using over 65,000 electronic voting machines. The Election
Commission is expected to notify the names of the elected
candidates by a Gazette on May 12 or 13 to the Legislature
Secretary after the final list is made available by tomorrow
evening. This would ensure the constitution of the new Assembly
before the expiry of the six-month Constitutional deadline.
The previous Assembly was dissolved on November 14, 2003.
Jallianwala survivor votes (Go
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Amritsar:
Bapu Shingara Singh, 109, the only survivor of the Jallianwala
Bagh massacre of April 13, 1919 was enthusiastic when he
left his home today to cast his vote. Bapu got ready with
the help of his grandsons and great grandsons and was beaming
as his grandson Balraj Singh carried him into the polling
station at the Government Elementary School in Duburji Lubana
near Amritsar. Bapu was conscious enough that his shaking
fingers didn't press the Congress party's candidate button
by mistake and doubly ensured it with the presiding officer
and his grandson that he was pressing on SAD's symbol 'takri'
Bapu hailed Partap Singh Kairon's rule in Punjab and also
appreciated Parkash Singh Badal's rule. "At least the families
of 'majbi's ' used to get some money on the marriage of
his daughter which was no more there" said he. Shingara
Singh didn't forget to remind about the unfulfilled promises
made by the president Abdul Kalam made to him durng his
Amritsar visit. "Mein Hun Daang Phar Lavan" (should I carry
baton in my hand to get his (Kalam's) promises fulfilled),
he said.
