Maheshpur: Voters of tribal-dominated Neemdanga village under Manikpur panchayat in Maheshpur constituency sat on dharna in front of polling booth on Wednesday, saying "No road, no vote."
Budhan Murmu, a villager, said, "We have been demanding a good road for last 10 years, but nobody bothered about us. So we decided to boycott polls." Polling Officials repeatedly requested the villagers to cast their votes, but they remained adamant. "Start road construction first, only then we will vote," they demanded.
Senior district administration officials rushed to the spot. Finally, they had to arrange road construction materials and work began. The villagers relented after that and stood in queues to vote. Polling finally began at 1 PM. An official said polling will continue till voters keep arriving. "Polling is likely to continue till late evening. A generator has been arranged for this purpose," he said.