Repoll in Bihar, Jharkhand; 55% turnout in 2nd phase

NI Wire

New Delhi

Fri, 24 Apr 2009: 

As many as 146 polling stations in Bihar and 58 in Jharkhand will go to repoll, the Election Commission ordered on Thursday just after the poll. While repolling will be conducted in Jharkhand on May 28, the date will be announced shortly for Bihar. Overall 55 percent turnout was recorded in the second phase of polli Thursday.

Deputy Election Commissioner R Balkrishnan said yesterday at a press conference that the decision has been taken for repolling as the process in some places could not take place and at other places EVMs were either snatched or set afire or damaged.

“Polling in six booths in Sasaram and three in Aurangabad had to be adjourned as polling parties could not reach there,” he informed.

The repolls will be held in five polling stations of Maharajganj, two of Buxar, six each of Saran, Sasaram and Karakat, 44 of Jahanabad, 41 of Aurangabad, 16 of Gaya and three of Jamui.

Balkrishnan also expressed deep satisfaction at the hassle free elections, as the first phase proved nightmare at some places owing to Naxals attack, and congratulated the security forces, polling personnel, state police, home guards and all others involved in poll process for the tremendous job done by them.

Around 140 constituencies across 12 states went to the second phase of poll along with Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Orissa for 140 and 77 constituencies respectively. The poll percentage was 68 and 55 in theses two states.

Overall 55 percentage turnout was recorded for the second phase in which 19.40 electorates exercised their franchise. Maximum turnout was recorded in Tripura (78-80%) and the minimum in Bihar and UP (44%).

In other states, the polling percentage was: Assam 62, Jharkhand 47, Madhya Pradesh 45, Orissa 55, Andhra Pradesh 68, Maharashtra 56, Karnataka 55, J&K 46 and 55 per cent polling was recorded in Goa.

The deputy Election Commissioner defined the second phase of poll as “extremely satisfactory and incident-free”.

No major incident of extremist violence or untoward incident was reported in the second phase though polling involved 27 parliamentary constituencies fully affected by Naxalism and another five partially affected.

However, some sporadic incidents affected the poll process at some places. In Bihar’s Motihari district, a vehicle ferrying Central police forces was blasted by Naxalites. The vehicle damaged but no casualties occurred. In Vaishali district, a polling station was gutted fire. In Jharkhand, three blasts went off at different places.

In Andhra Pradesh too polling was disrupted in 34 polling stations because of snatching, torching or damaging EVMs in the Eluru, Narasaraopet, Bapatla, Anantapur, Kadapa and Rajampet Lok Sabha constituencies.