New Delhi: Voting for the first phase of Chhattisgarh Assembly polls in 18 constituencies ended amidst a low voter turnout. There was no voter turnout in 42 polling booths in Sukma where polling booths are located inside security camps.
As per the Election Commission data released at 1pm, 33 per cent voting had been recorded in the state. By 11 am, there was 13 per cent voting in the state.
While the state went for polls, an encounter between Naxals and security forces continued for over five hours in Kanker. A low intensity IED blast was also reported where a BSF jawan was injured.
Apart from these incidents, Chhattisgarh police said that close to 15 to 20 IEDs were recovered from Sukma, Kanker, Dantewada and Narayanpur areas in the state.
There were also reports of clashes between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers from Jagdalpur. Congress candidate Samu Kashyap had now alleged that supporters of BJP leader Santosh Bafna had attacked him on Sunday night. He alleged that he and his supporters were beaten with sticks and threatened to leave politics.
Chhattisgarh has been the first state to exercise the newly introduced None Of The Above (NOTA) option in the elections in the entire country which gives the voters the right to reject the candidates contesting in the elections.
The 18 Assembly constituencies which were up for polls on Monday were from one of most militarised zones in the World. Due to a fear of Maoist attacks, more than 1,43,000 security personnel had been deployed in the 8 districts, which have a total of 18 Assembly seats for the elections.
Chief Minister Dr. Raman Singh who is seeking a third straight term as the Chief Minister is contesting from Rajnandagoan. He is facing Alka Mudaliar, the widow Congress leader Uday Mudaliar who was killed in a Maoist attack in May 2013. 143 candidates including 10 female candidates are in the fray.
Kawasi Lakma of the Congress, who is seeking a fourth straight term from Konta is the opposition candidate to watch out for. After the assassination of leader of opposition Mahendra Karma in the Maoist ambush, Lakma has emerged as the strongest leader of the party in Bastar.
Manish Kunjam of the CPI is also another important candidate whose fate will be decided by the voters on Monday.
The slain leader Mahendra Karma's wife Devati Karma is contesting from Dantewada on Congress ticket. Her son feels that the sympathy wave will help her.
In 2008 Assembly polls too, the voting was minimal in the Maoist hotbed of Dantewada, Bijapur and Konta.
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