Our Correspondent
Kohima, May 14 (EMN): As the deadline for withdrawal of candidature to the ensuing Lok Sabha by-election expired on Monday – and with none of the two candidates who filed their nomination papers backing out – Nagaland is set to witness a straight fight between the People’s Democratic Alliance (PDA) candidate Tokheho Yepthomi of Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP and rival Naga People’s Front (NPF) candidate C Apok Jamir. The bye-election to the state’s lone Lok Sabha seat is scheduled to be held on May 28.
The PDA will be launching an intensive election campaign on May 15 at Dimapur’s DDSC Stadium at 11 am where a host of speakers led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and legislators from the alliance partners besides the coalition’s candidate will be addressing the voters.
On the other hand, opposition NPF will be launching its campaign the next day, on May 16, (interestingly) from Ura Academy Hall in Kohima. The NPF’s choice of the venue for launching its election campaign only deepen questions and the obscurity as to why the party appears to be employing the platform of the academic sector to garner public support.
A letter written by the NPF president Dr. Shürhozelie Liezietsu, who is also the president of Ura Academy, addressed to Akavi Zhimomi, ‘founder AAP’ and Sushil Kumar, ‘senior leader AAP’ seeking their support for the NPF candidate has been circulating in social media since Sunday morning. The letter bore the letterhead of Ura Academy instead of the NPF.
Nevertheless, a total of 11,97,438 electors will be casting their votes in 2196 polling stations across Nagaland in the by-poll. The by-election to the state’s single parliamentary seat in the Lok Sabha will be held along with three other parliamentary constituencies – two in Maharashtra and one in Uttar Pradesh.
The by-election in the state will be headed Commissioner as the returning officer, who will be assisted by 12 assistant returning officers including the district electoral officers-cum-deputy commissioners of all the 11 districts and the ADC of Pughoboto.
