Elections 2018: 13 Nagaland Booths to go For Repolls on 2 March
The results of polls in Nagaland, Meghalaya and Tripura will be declared on 3 March.
The results for the Assembly elections in Meghalaya and Nagaland will be announced along with Tripura on 3 March. In both the states, the BJP is contesting the long-standing stints of the Congress and the Left Front, respectively.
- 13 Nagaland booths will go for repolling on 2 March
- Nagaland recorded 75% polling while Meghalaya 67% in the Assembly polls held in the two northeastern states on 27 February
- In the last Assembly elections, 90.57% polling was recorded in Nagaland and 89% in Meghalaya
- One person was injured in a blast at a polling station in Nagaland’s Tizit
- In Nagaland, NDPP chief Neiphiu Rio was declared elected unopposed from the Northern Angami-II constituency ahead of the polls
- Both states have a 60-member House each, but voting was held for 59 constituencies in both
Re-polling in 13 Nagaland Booths on 2 March
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Nagaland on Thursday announced re-polling in 13 booths spread across nine Assembly constituencies on 2 March.
The re-polling will be held from 7 am to 3 pm, CEO Abhijit Sinha said. The nine constituencies where re-polling would be held are Tamlu, Peren, Kohima Town, Chizami, Phek, Meluri, Tizit, Pungro-Kiphire and Llongkhim-Chare.
Sinha said polling could not be held in one booth in Tamlu constituency on February 27 due to the alleged intervention of the Assam Police with claims that the booth falls under Disturbed Area Belt between Assam and Nagaland.
The Election Commission has directed that fresh poll be conducted there at some alternative temporary structure, the CEO said.
(With PTI inputs)
Assembly Polls Voters Turnout: 75% in Nagaland, 67% in Meghalaya
75% and 67% voting turnout recorded respectively in Nagaland and Meghalaya Assembly polls till 4 pm.
The polling percentage is likely to go up as long queues were reported in a number of polling stations even after the polling was scheduled to close at 4 pm, PTI said quoting an election commission officer.
Voting Till 1 PM - 56% in Nagaland, 27% in Meghalaya
As per the latest numbers reported by ANI, Nagaland recorded (56 percent) almost double the polling numbers as compared to Meghalaya (27.75 percent) till 1 PM.
Nagaland: One Dead in Clashes Between NPF and NDPP Supporters
One person died and two others were injured after clash erupted between groups of Naga People's Front and Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party near a polling booth in Akuluto, news agency ANI reported.
21.5 Percent Polling in Meghalaya Till Noon
Around 21.5 percent of the voters have exercised their franchise till noon for the Meghalaya Assembly election, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the state F R Kharkongor said.
Polling started at 7 am and no incidents of violence was reported from anywhere in the state, the CEO said.
"We have received complaints of EVM malfunctioning in some booths. The faulty machines were replaced and voting resumed within a short time in those polling stations," he said.
Meghalaya CM Casts His Vote
Chief Minister Mukul Sangma casted his vote in in his constituency – Ampaty in South West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya.
"We have done our best. We have showed the vision for the state. I am confident people will vote for change. It is now for the voters and I hope people turn out in large number," Conrad Sangma told PTI over phone soon after casting his vote.
20 Percent Voter Turnout in Meghalaya till 11 am
As of 11 am, 20 percent polling was recorded in Meghalaya, ANI reported.
38 Percent Polling Till 11 am in Nagaland
Around 38 percent polling was registered in the first four hours of voting for the 60-member Nagaland Assembly, ANI reported.
Meghalaya Governor Casts Vote
The Governor of Meghalaya, Ganga Prasad, cast his vote at the Oakland A4 polling booth at the MTDC Office North in Shillong.
Nagaland CM Confident of NPF Majority
“We expect that polling will finish smoothly and we (Nagaland People’s Front) will get absolute majority as per voice of the people. We hope peace will prevail in the state and we will move for Naga political solution,” Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang rold ANI.
One Injured in Bomb Blast at Nagaland Polling Station
One person sustained a leg injury in a bomb blast at a polling station in Tizit area in Nagaland’s Mon District.
"A handmade crude bomb was lobbed at the polling booth at around 5:45 am, in which one village council member, Yanlon, suffered minor injuries in the leg," Nagaland's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Abhijit Sinha told PTI.
However, polling is continuing in the said booth.
Voting Underway at a Polling Station in Nagaland's Peren District
Voting Underway at a Polling Station in North Shillong
Modi Urges Meghalaya and Nagaland to Vote in Large Numbers
In a tweet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the people of both states to vote in “large numbers”.
Voting Begins in Nagaland
Election to the 60-member Nagaland assembly began at 7 am today amid tight security as more than half of 2,156 polling stations have been declared critical.
With Nationalist Democratic People's Party(NDPP) chief Neiphiu Rio winning unopposed the Northern Angami-II seat, polling is being held in 59 seats.
Voting will continue till 4 pm, except in some polling stations of the interior districts where it will end at 3 pm, election office sources said.
Officials said many as 281 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), beside the state police force have been deployed throughout Nagaland to ensure peaceful polling.
Nagaland Chief Electoral Officer Abhijit Sinha said of the 2,156 polling stations in Nagaland, 1,100 have been declared critical, 530 vulnerable and 526 normal.
All the polling stations would be manned by the CAPF personnel and the state police would also be assisting them, he added.
(Source: PTI)
Voting Begins in Meghalaya
Polling for the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly began at 7 am this morning amid tight security with over 18 lakh voters eligible to exercise their franchise in more than 3,000 polling stations across the state.
Voting will be held in 59 seats as the polling in Williamnagar in East Garo Hills district has been countermanded following the killing of NCP candidate Jonathane N Sangma in an IED blast on February 18.
Women voters in their colourful tribal attires were seen queueing up at polling stations across the state since morning and shops in the vicinity did brisk business.
The polls will be held till 4 am across the state.
Meghalaya CEO F R Kharkongor said a total 106 companies of central armed police forces (CAPF) have been deployed along with state armed personnel and police especially in troubled Garo Hills region for peaceful polling in the state.
He said that six additional companies of CAPF were deployed in the troubled East and South Garo Hills districts.
(Source: PTI)
Voters Begin Queuing Up
Voters begin queuing up outside Chengkompara-25 polling station in CM Mukul Sangma’s constituency of Ampatigiri.
Cash Worth Rs 38 Lakh Seized in Meghalaya a Day Before Polls
Election authorities in poll-bound Meghalaya seized over Rs 38 lakh in cash from East Khasi Hills district on Monday, 26 February. The seizure was made from the Lad Smit area and follows the seizure of Rs 12 lakh in Ri-Bhoi district carried out on 24 February.
“The static surveillance team has seized Rs 38.67 lakh from one person under Madanrting police station limits today,” chief electoral officer FR Kharkongor told PTI.
The seizure was made from a coal trader and a resident of West Jaintia Hills district who was travelling on a brand new SUV. The cash was handed over to concerned authorities and investigation is on to find out the source and destination, an election official who was involved in monitoring movements, said.
Till date, over Rs 70 lakh have been seized from several persons in the state.
Nagaland Faces a Tough Drill With the Elections
The election process in Nagaland had started on a difficult note. Following a no-election diktat from the Core Committee of Nagaland Tribal Hohos and Civil Organisations (CCNTHCO), advocating "solution (to the Naga political issue) before election", the political parties had initially kept away from the poll process.
Though the process of nomination-filing had started on 31 January, the first batch of 22 contestants filed their candidature only on the penultimate day on 5 February. There was a heavy rush of nominees filing their papers on the last day.
After the scrutiny and withdrawal, a total of 227 nominees are left in the field in Nagaland.
All You Need to Know About the Polls
Meghalaya
There are 370 candidates in the fray in Meghalaya. A total of 18.4 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in 3,083 polling stations in the state.
Meghalaya's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) FR Kharkongor said for the first time, 67 all-women polling stations and 61 model polling stations were set up in the state.
He added that 32 women candidates were in the fray, the highest ever in the state.
The Meghalaya CEO told PTI that six of the 10 additional companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) were deployed in the troubled East and South Garo Hills districts.
Nagaland
In Nagaland, a total of 11,91,513 voters – 6,01,707 (50.50 percent) men and 5,89,806 (49.50 percent) women – will exercise their franchise. There are also 5,925 service voters.
Voting will be conducted in 2,156 polling stations as 40 polling stations fall under the Northern Angami-II seat, from where Rio has been declared elected unopposed.
Over 15,000 government employees will be on poll duty and there will be 177 all-women polling stations across 25 constituencies in the state.
As many as 281 companies of the CAPF, besides the state police force, are deployed throughout Nagaland to ensure a peaceful election.
Campaigns in Meghalaya, Nagaland Conclude
A high-decibel campaign for the polls in Meghalaya and Nagaland came to an end on 25 February.
Political observers are keenly watching the BJP's push in the Northeast, a Congress stronghold, where the saffron party has traditionally been a marginal player.
But this time, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to throw the Congress out of power and add Meghalaya into its kitty.
In Nagaland, the BJP's hope hinges on its alliance partner NDPP (the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party) of Neiphiu Rio, which is contesting from 40 seats. The saffron party has fielded candidates from the remaining 20 seats.
The Congress, which has given three chief ministers to Nagaland since the state's inception in 1963, is contesting from only 18 seats, two less than the BJP, an emerging entity in the Northeast.
Stage Set For Elections in Nagaland, Meghalaya
The stage is set for crucial Assembly elections in the two northeastern states of Meghalaya and Nagaland on 27 February.
Polling will be held between 7 am and 4 pm, except in some polling stations of the interior districts of Nagaland, where the process is scheduled to conclude at 3 pm.
In Meghalaya, the election has been countermanded in Williamnagar in the wake of the killing of NCP candidate Jonathone N Sangma in an IED blast in East Garo Hills district on 18 February.
In Nagaland, NDPP chief Neiphiu Rio has been declared elected unopposed from the Northern Angami-II constituency.
The results of the polls in the two states, along with that of Tripura, will be declared on 3 March.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI and IANS)
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