A total of 81.54 percent voters decided the fate of as many as 785 candidates in the elections to urban bodies across Tripura on Thursday amidst allegations of violence and rigging,
The voting for 222 seats of Agartala Municipal Corporation and other urban bodies passed off by and large peacefully except some sporadic incidents. According to police sources, there was no report of any major incident in any part of the poll-bound areas.
According to State Election Commission sources, there were 4,93,041 eligible voters—2,43,249 males, 2,49,778 females and 14 others. Among them, 81.54 percent of voters had exercised their franchise as per the latest update.
While Trinamool Congress and CPI-M raised the allegations of booth capturing and intimidation by BJP supporters in various places, the BJP denied the allegations saying that the opposition parties were frustrated and they even couldn’t find polling agents for many of the booths. Both the parties had staged sit-in protests in two police stations of Agartala.
“There were some complaints related to alleged obstructions/ threatening to the voters, candidates, polling agents, which were resolved by police through timely intervention,” an official statement from Tripura Police said.
Total 98 persons—41 Outsiders, 32 supporters of TMC and 25 cadres of CPI-M– were arrested from AMC area under preventive sections of law for attempting breach of peace and they all were released in the afternoon, the police statement said.
As per an order passed by the Supreme Court of India relating to Urban Local Body Election of Tripura on Thursday, two companies of BSF provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday were used in 32 polling booths under the Agartala Municipal Corporation as identified by the District Magistrate, West Tripura.
“Two more companies of CRPF have been drafted by the MHA and these are expected to reach from Assam by 26.11.2021 which will be utilised in the remaining phases of election process,” the statement reads.
One polling agent of TMC was hurt in an incident near Acharya Prafulla Chandra School under NCC police station in which two persons were detained. In another incident at Melaghar, the candidate of CPIM for Ward No- 4 alleged that he was assaulted and moved out of the booth by a group of BJP supporters. The case refers to Melaghar PS case No. 77/ 2021 u/s 325/ 34 IPC against 5 FIR named accused persons and unknown others is under investigation.
At booth No- 9 of the AMC Ward No- 8 at Indranagar High School under NCC PS and Ward No — 5 of Sonamura Nagar Panchayat at NCI School some miscreants tried to damage the EVM for which voting was suspended for some time. Timely intervention of civil authorities ensured resumption of the voting process.
(With inputs from Tripura Times)
