Meghalaya assembly polls peaceful; over 75 per cent turnout recorded

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More than 75 per cent of the 21.6 lakh electors in Meghalaya cast their votes on Monday till 5 pm and the polling was peaceful, Chief Electoral Officer FR Kharkongor said.

The figure is expected to increase as the polling continued for several hours after the scheduled time of conclusion.

The ruling National People's Party (NPP) is contesting to retain power while the BJP, Trinamool Congress and other regional parties are attempting to bring about a change in the government in the northeastern state.

The Congress and the BJP are contesting in 59 seats, while the NPP has put up nominees in 56 constituencies, the TMC in 57 and the UDP in 46. Though Meghalaya has a 60-member assembly, polling in Sohiong constituency has been adjourned following the death of one of the candidates.

"At 5 pm, over 75 per cent turnout was recorded. In 200 odd polling stations in four districts, voting is likely to go on till 9 pm," Kharkongor said. "Polling is being held in a free and fair manner. No untoward incident has been reported," he said.

Malfunctioning of EVMs was reported in a few polling booths but these were later fixed, the CEO said. Voting took place in 3,419 polling stations, of which 640 have been categorised as 'vulnerable' and 323 as 'critical'.

"Over 19,000 polling personnel and 119 companies of CAPFs have been deployed across the state. They have been backed by state policemen to maintain law and order," the CEO said.

Also read: Give change a chance: Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge to Meghalaya, Nagaland voters

NPP supremo and Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma is contesting from the South Tura constituency where he locked horns with militant-turned-BJP leader Bernard Marak.

Leader of Opposition and TMC leader Mukul Sangma is contesting from two seats -- Songsak and Tikrikilla -- while his wife D D Shira is also in the fray. The CEO also informed reporters that an Assam MLA had made a statement that "residents of Assam" in six police stations of Mawhati constituency along the disputed border will not be allowed to vote.

However, the matter was resolved after governments of both states took cognisance of this, he said.

Enforcement agencies have made the seizure of drugs, cash and freebies which was 20 times higher this year as compared to 2018. Seizure of over Rs 74.18 crore was made since January 18 whereas the value of drugs seized was over Rs 33 crore and the value of cash was Rs 8.71 crore. The seizure made in 2018 was Rs 1.15 crore only, he said.

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