Newmai News Network
IMPHAL, January 11
Polls to eighteen Municipal Councils and eight Nagar Panchayats in the four valley districts of Manipur were held peacefully under tight security today.
The polling was started from 8 am and concluded at 4 pm. The polls were conducted to elect a total of 685 Councillors and 1042 Ward Development Committee (WDC) members from the four districts.
Voters lined up at polling stations to exercise their franchise since early morning. Nine Councillors and 162 WDC members had already been declared elected uncontested. The INC put up 189 candidates, BJP fielded 181, 280 from Independent and 16 by the CPI in the fray which witnessed a neck to neck contest between the ruling Congress and the state BJP. Counting of vote will be held on January 15.
Bishnupur registered an 81.13 turnout during the polling held in six Municipal Councils and one Nagar Panchayat. Only women personnel were deployed for poll duty at two polling stations—10/1 Nambol Collegiate High School and 10/2 Nari Kalayan Vidyalaya— in Bishnupur’s Nambol.
INC and BJP workers caught up in a scuffle at two polling stations of Imphal East’s Jiribam subdivision. A scuffle was reported from polling booths 7/1 and 7/2 in Jiribam’s Babupara, officials said. Police intervened in the confrontation on time and the polling process at the 20 booths continued till 4 pm. The election was held in the subdivision to elect 10 Councillors and 20 Ward members. INC fielded 10 candidates, seven from BJP and 10 from Independent in Jiribam.
The local body elections, which witnessed a close fight between the ruling Congress and the state BJP, were held after the Indian National Congress (INC) suffered a defeat in the hands of the BJP in the recent by-poll held in Imphal’s two constituencies of Thangmeiband and Thongju, ensuring the saffron party to open its account in the 60-member state assembly.
Victory for the BJP in the local body elections is expected to be a major shot in the arm. This election has also been considered vital to the state BJP in view of the upcoming state assembly elections to be held next year.
