310 CAPF, 90 Assam Police companies deployed to ensure peaceful hustings
HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, March 31: The fate of five ministers, the deputy speaker and a few significant opposition faces will be decided as 39 seats in the state will go for the second phase of assembly elections on Thursday.
Altogether 345 candidates, including 26 women, are in the fray in the second phase, the polling for which will be held from 7 am to 6 pm amid heavy security and strict Covid-19 guidelines.
The ruling BJP is contesting 34 seats, while its allies Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) are fighting in six and three seats, respectively.
There are “friendly contests” between the BJP and the AGP in Patharkandi and Algapur, while the BJP is engaged in similar fights with the UPPL in Majbat and Kalaigaon.
The Grand Alliance’s Congress is contesting in 28 seats, the AIUDF in seven and Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF) in four. The newly-formed Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) is contesting in 19 seats.
There is a direct contest between the NDA and the Grand Alliance in 25 constituencies, while the rest are witnessing triangular fights.
The fate of 32 candidates from four constituencies of Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong will also be sealed in EVMs as the two districts will go to poll on Thursday. The four constituencies are: 17-Bokajan, 18-Howraghat, 19-Diphu and 20-Baithalangso.
Former HAD minister Sum Ronghang is contesting from the Diphu constituency, while sitting MLA Numal Momin is contesting from Bokajan constituency. In the lone assembly seat of Dima Hasao district, Nandita Gorlosa is contesting against Congress candidate former minister GC Langthasa’s son Nirmal Langthasa.
During the last 13 days of campaign the national parties BJP and Congress, the regional parties like the Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC) and Independents who have fielded candidates for the election have made their last desperate attempt to woo the voters. In the two hill districts the major poll issue by all political parties has been the implementation of Article 244(A) of the Constitution of India for creation of Autonomous State. During the campaign political parties have come up with big promises before the voters. Blame and counter-attacks were seen in election meetings.
A total 1,47,138 electors that includes 73,262 women and 73,876 male voters will vote in the second phase of the 16-Haflong constituency. While the first batch of officials for 145 polling stations moved on Tuesday for far-flung polling stations out of total 246 polling stations, the polling officials of the remaining 145 polling stations moved for their destination on Wednesday.
Minister Pijush Hazarika is locked in a triangular contest with Congress’s Swapan Kumar Mandal and AJP’s Bubul Das from Jagiroad (SC), and his cabinet colleague Bhabesh Kalita is in a direct fight with AJP’s Babul Saharia in the Rangiya constituency.
Rajya Sabha MP Biswajit Daimary is fighting against BPF’s Karuna Kanta Swargiary in Paneri, while AIUDF’s Sirajuddin Ajmal, a former MP and MLA, is fighting the elections against AGP’s Sadikullah Bhuyan from Jamunamukh.
Former Congress minister Gautam Roy, contesting on a BJP ticket from Katigora, is in a direct fight with his ex-party colleague Khalliluddin Mazumdar. Gautam’s son Rahul Roy, contesting as an Independent, is in a triangular contest with former Congress minister Ajit Singh and sitting BJP MLA Mihir Kanti Shome from Udharbond. Gautam Roy’s daughter-in-law Daisy Roy is also contesting as an Independent from Algapur where the AGP’s Aftabuddin Laskar and BJP’s Moon Swarnakar, in a ‘friendly contest’, will battle against sitting AIUDF MLA Nijamuddin Choudhury.
In Silchar, sitting BJP MLA Dilip Paul, now expelled from the party, is contesting as an Independent and is locked in a contest with BJP’s Dipayan Chakraborty and Congress’s Tamal Kanti Banik. Total 175 candidates are fighting the phase two elections from 15 seats in the three districts of Karimganj, Hailakandi and Cachar. Algapur has the highest 19 candidates.
There are only two candidates in Udalguri (ST) constituency where BPF minister Rihon Daimary is engaged in a direct contest with UPPL’s Gobinda Chandra Basumatary, who is currently the deputy chief of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC).
“As many as 310 Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) companies and 90 companies of state police have been deployed for the second phase,” Assam chief electoral officer (CEO) Nitin Khade said. The number of eligible voters in the second phase of the election is 73,44,631. Out of this, 37,34,537 are male voters and 36,09,959 are female voters, while 135 are third gender voters. Also, there are 17,164 service voters in this election. As many as 8,998 polling stations will be there in this phase and the number of auxiliary polling stations is 1,594 at 5,774 polling locations. The total number of all-women polling stations in the second phase is 556. The second phase of voting will be held on April 1. “One constable and one home guard will also be deployed at each polling station. Besides this, sector and zonal police officers are continually monitoring the security situation,” Khade said addressing a press conference here.
In view of the worsening Covid-19 situation, the Election Commission of India (ECI) had issued guidelines lowering the maximum number of voters per polling booth from 1,600 to 1,000. The guidelines also include sanitisation of electronic voting machines (EVMs), wearing of masks and other protective gear by polling personnel, the availability of thermal scanners, hand sanitizers, soaps, and water at booths. Thermal scanning of all persons will be carried out before allowing them to enter inside the EVM room. The Election Commission has completed all preparations for voting.
Polling for the last phase will be held on April 6 and counting of votes will take place on May 2. The first phase took place on March 27 with a voter turnout of nearly 77 per cent.