Violence mars Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh; MP records 73.86% turnout

Chhattisgarh recorded a provisional voter turnout of 70.49 per cent in the second phase of Assembly elections for 70 constituencies on Friday while Madhya Pradesh saw 73.84 per cent polling.

In Chhattisgarh, a jawan of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) was killed in a blast triggered by Naxalites in Gariaband district. The incident took place when a polling team, being escorted by security personnel, was returning after conducting voting.

In the 2018 Assembly polls, a voter turnout of 76.62 per cent was recorded on 72 seats in the second phase. This time, two of these constituencies were covered in the first phase of polling held on November 7. In the last Assembly elections, MP recorded a voter turnout of 75.63 per cent.

 

A highlight of the polling in Chhattisgarh was all-women teams managing all the 201 booths in Raipur (North), a first in the country’s electoral history, the Election Commission (EC) said. The EC added that 1,046 women were deployed in the 201 polling booths.

“These all-women managed polling booths provided a sense of comfort and security to all voters, especially women and voters of the third gender for more inclusive elections,” the EC said in a statement.

Seventy Assembly seats in Chhattisgarh went to polls in the second phase on Friday, while elections were held in all the 230 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh. The first phase of polls to the 90-member Chhattisgarh Assembly was held on November 7.

The Sonewani polling station in Madhya Pradesh’s Balaghat Assembly seat registered a 100 per cent voter turnout with all 42 electors — 26 women and 16 men — casting their votes, the EC said.

The EC said it made concerted efforts to facilitate voting among members of the tribal communities.

This resulted in 100 per cent enrolment among the particularly-vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs) residing in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.