Raipur, Nov 12: The stage is set for the first phase of Chhattisgarh Assembly polls 2018 in 18 seats spread across eight Maoist-affected districts on Monday.
Polling in 10 constituencies - Mohla-Manpur, Antagarh, Bhanupratappur, Kanker, Keshkal, Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur and Konta - will start at 7 am and end at 3 pm.
In the other eight seats - Khairgarh, Dongargarh, Rajnandgaon, Dongargaon, Khujji, Bastar, Jagdalpur and Chitrakot - the polling time will be 8 am to 5 pm. A total of 190 candidates, including Chief Minister Raman Singh from Rajnandgaon, are contesting in this phase. The results of Chhattisgarh elections will be declared on 11 December.
Also Read | Survey gives majority to Cong in Rajasthan, MP; close fight in Chhattisgarh, Mizoram
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is eyeing a fourth straight term in the tribal-dominated state as the opposition Congress seeks to return to power after 15 years. The stakes are very high for the saffron party on these 18 seats as it had lost 12 of them in the last polls held in 2013.
As many as 4,336 polling booths have been set up for the first phase of the state polls. There are 31,79,520 voters, including 16,21,839 males, 15,57,592 females and 89 of the third gender.
Around 1 lakh security personnel have been deployed in Chhattisgarh for smooth conduct of the first phase of polling on November 12, a senior police official said Saturday.
A total of 650 companies, including those from paramilitary units like CRPF, BSF, ITBP and around 65,000 personnel from police forces of other states, have been sent by the Centre for the assembly polls, he said.
During the campaign for the polls, BJP leaders highlighted how Maoism, which was at its peak during the Congress rule in the state, was contained during the last 15 years and also the development works taken up by the government.
On the other side, the Congress accused the BJP of "failing" to control the Maoist menace and referred to the chit fund and civil supply scams. It also targeted the chief minister's son Abhishek Singh over his alleged offshore assets.
Stay tuned for more LIVE updates.