Elaborate arrangements for final phase LS polls

Elaborate arrangements have been made to ensure peaceful polling in the fifth and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in 86 constituencies spread over nine States and Union Territories go to poll on Wednesday (May 13).

Deputy Election Commissioner R Balakrishnan briefing media persons in New Delhi said that around 6000 villages and hamlets have been identified as vulnerable to threats. The Commission has made adequate arrangements for free and fair polls, keeping in mind the incidence of violence in the last phase of polling in West Bengal.

Electioneering for the final phase came to an end on Monday evening with the vigorous campaign by NDA and UPA both attacking each other.

Elections will be held in seven States, namely Himachal Pradesh (4 seats), Jammu & Kashmir (2), Punjab (9), Uttar Pradesh (14), West Bengal (11), Uttrakhand (5) and for all 39 seats in Tamil Nadu, including two Union Territories for lone seat each in Chandigarh and Puducherry. Tamil Nadu is vital for Congress and it would try to repeat the performance of 2004 when Cong-DMK combine had swept all 39 seats.

In the first four phases from April 16 to May 07, elections have been completed for 457 seats so far in the 543 parliamentary seats.

For the rest 86 seats, there are 1432 candidates in the fray, including 93 women candidates, whose fate will be decided by 10 crore 78 lakhs eligible electorates.

Congress leader P Chidambaram and debutant Mohd. Azharuddin, BJP's Maneka Gandhi, Varun Gandhi, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Vinod Khanna, DMK's M K Azhagiri, Dayanidhi Maran, and T R Baalu, MDMK's Vaiko, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and SP's Jayaprada are among the prominent candidates in this phase of election, including Mani Shankar Aiyar, cricket-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, separatist leader Sajjad Gani Lone etc.

Meanwhile, the Commission on Monday ordered re-polling in two polling stations in New Delhi constituency as a total of 232 votes were cast against the deleted names in both these seats.

The Commission has also ruled out re-polling in six constituencies in Bihar comprising Munger, Saran, Maharajganj, Jamui, Jahanabad and Aurangabad.

Balakrishnan said that the Election Commission has come to conclusion after studying the reports of a probing team that facts do not support by-poll in those areas.