Tight security as Chhattisgarh votes, 16% turnout in first few hours - Hindustan Times The first phase of assembly polls in Chhattisgarh’s 18 constituencies of Bastar region and Rajnandgaon district on Monday saw 16% voters exercising their franchise in the first few hours amid Maoist violence in many areas. A low intensity IED blast triggered by the Maoists injured a policeman patrolling in Pakhanjur area of north Bastar. Bastar inspector general of police Arun Dev Gautam told HT that injured the policeman was rushed to hospital and was out of danger. In another incident, Maoists attacked security forces at Titram forest at Kanker which resulted in cross firing. There have been, however, no reports of any injury or casualty so far. Maoists also attempted to disrupt polls by firing at four different polling booths in Bastar area -- two booths in Kanker, one each in Dantewada and Bijapur constituencies minutes after polling began on Monday. Security forces, however, retaliated on time forcing them to flee. The rebels had barely fired two rounds from a distance at one of our booths, Bijapur police superintendent, Prashant Agarwal said, declining there was any visible Maoists threat to the peaceful poll. He said a 10-kg pipe bomb was recovered from a path leading to the polling booth, which was successfully defused. State chief of the election commission Sunil Kujur too confirmed reports of recovery of bombs and firing at polling booths at couple of places. But, he said, situation was by and large peaceful in Bastar. On Sunday night, Congress candidate Samu Kashyap from Jagdalpur and his two supporters were allegedly attacked by unknown miscreants while they were conducting door to door campaign. Kashyap has been admitted to a hospital. He has alleged that BJP supporters were behind the attack. Voting was cancelled in Durgapur and Pitram areas in Antagarh as officials were unable to reach the polling stations because of Maoist threat. Voting also failed to kick start in Chhote Pakhanjore and Sitaramaiyya of Kanker district. Maoist terror also prevailed in Golapalli, Jagargunda and Kistaram of Sukma district as voters refrained from voting citing security reasons. Kolen village in Jagdalpur boycotted the elections citing the lack of basic amenities in the village. A polling officer died of heart attack at Balenga village in Kondagaon assembly constituency of Bastar minutes after polling began. Defying the Maoists diktat of poll boycott, voters turned out in large numbers at almost all the polling booths in the sensitive and supersensitive areas of Bastar in the morning. Braving the thick mist, villagers, majority of them women, started thronging the polling booths from 6am. The voters in the rural areas outnumbered the voters in the urban region during the first hour of polling in which presence of youths remain conspicuous. Polling in Bastar region’s 12 constituencies will continue till 3pm. This will enable the polling staff to complete their work and return safely before the sunset. The fate of 145 candidates including chief minister Raman Singh would be sealed in the first phase of polling on Monday. DGP Ram Niwas said maximum security measures have been taken to ensure free and peaceful polling. We have fool-proof planning at the micro-level. Around a dozen choppers have been pressed into service. (With agency inputs) KLik Baca selanjutnya : ift.tt/1eCBD4L
Posted on: Mon, 11 Nov 2013 08:06:49 +0000
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