Chhattisgarh sees 68% poll turnout, Jogi escapes attack

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Phase five today, long wait begins for May 16

Raipur, Bilaspur, Nov 20 : Former chief minister Ajit Jogi escaped unhurt when his vehicle was attacked by unidentified persons in Bilaspur district during the second and final phase of voting in Chhattisgarh on Thursday.

The Assembly elections that recorded a 68 %turnout and passed off peacefully in sharp contrast to the first phase.

An estimated 68% polling was recorded in the remaining 51 of the 90 Assembly constituencies and it might go little higher, deputy election commissioner Jaiprakash said in New Delhi.

“The polling was peaceful” and there was brisk polling right from the morning, he said. People in five polling stations observed boycott citing lack of development and non-fulfilment of poll promises, he said.

The commission also directed the state’s chief electoral officer to file a case against chief minister W Raman Singh for campaigning during the prohibited period on a FM channel in Raipur, he said, adding that directions have also been issued to issue notices to the network concerned. An FIR has been filed by one Gyanendra Upadhyaya for an incident of stoning at the car of Congress leader Ajit Jogi, Jayaprakash said.

To a question, Jaiprakash also said that the Election Commission was verifying a complaint about Jogi’s name figuring at two places in the state. The incident involving Jogi, the 61-year-old wheelchair-bound Congress leader, who is contesting from Marwahi Assembly constituency which went to polls on Thursday, happened when he was visiting a poll booth in Girwar, Subodh Singh, district electoral officer (DEO), Bilaspur said.

A 55% turnout was registered in the violence marred first phase of elections on Nov 14 for the 39 constituencies in which a flight engineer of IAF and a CRPF personnel were killed. Electoral fortunes of 687 candidates were sealed in Thursday’s polling.

Prominent leaders in the electoral battle include former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, his wife Renu Jogi, BJP state president Vishnu Deo Sai, Congress state president Dhanendra Sahu, deputy-speaker Badridhar Diwan and home minster Ram Vichar Netam.

Preliminary reports at the conclusion of voting said nearly 61 %of the 88 lakh voters exercised their right to franchise.

While 60 %turnout was reported in Raipur district, it was 65 %each in Raigarh, Korba and Jashpur.

In Bilaspur, 62 %of the voters cast their ballots, Sarguja 60%, Koria 55%, and Janjgir and Chapa 56%.

As many as 12,073 polling stations across the eight districts were set up for the second phase.