Chhattisgarh Assembly Elections Phase-I Sees 10% Voter Turnout by 9:30 AM

Raipur, Nov 7: The first phase of Chhattisgarh assembly elections, nearly 10 percent of eligible voters had cast their ballots by 9:30 AM, according to a poll official. The voting process commenced at 7 AM in 10 out of the 20 assembly constituencies scheduled for this phase, concluding at 3 PM. For the remaining 10 seats, voting began at 8 AM and was set to end at 5 PM.

Amidst heightened security measures involving police and paramilitary personnel, the elections took place in the Naxalite-affected Bastar division. Unfortunately, a CRPF commando was injured in an IED blast triggered by Naxalites in Sukma district during an area domination operation to ensure polling security.

Prominent figures who exercised their franchise early on included state ministers Kawasi Lakhma and Mohan Markam, as well as sitting Congress MLAs Chandan Kashyap and Savitri Mandavi, all contesting from their respective seats. BJP candidates and former ministers Kedar Kashyap and Lata Usendi also participated in the early voting. Additionally, a woman constable, Sumitra Sahu, who had left Naxalism in 2018 and joined the police force, cast her vote in Narayanpur constituency.

The first phase covered 20 of the 90 assembly seats in the state, with 223 candidates, including 25 women, in the race. The electoral rolls listed 40,78,681 eligible voters. The ruling Congress and the opposition BJP are the primary contenders for power in the state.

Women voters outnumbered men in the seats covered during the first phase, with 20,84,675 female voters on the rolls compared to 19,93,937 male voters, along with 69 third-gender voters. The electoral setup consisted of 5,304 polling booths and 25,249 polling personnel.

Voting in 10 constituencies in the Durg and Bastar divisions was held from 7 AM to 3 PM due to the Naxal threat. In the other 10 constituencies, polling began at 8 AM and was slated to continue until 5 PM. Approximately 60,000 security personnel, including 40,000 from the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and 20,000 from the state police, were deployed to ensure a smooth election process in the Bastar division, which encompasses 12 assembly segments.

Nearly 1 lakh security personnel were deployed for the first phase of polling, with 149 polling stations in five assembly constituencies in the Bastar division being relocated to the nearest police stations and security camps for security reasons. Surveillance included the use of drones and helicopters, while bomb disposal teams and dog squads were on standby.

Of the 20 seats in this phase, 12 were reserved for Scheduled Tribes, and one was reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates. Rajnandgaon had the highest number of contestants at 29, while Chitrakot and Dantewada each had seven contestants, the lowest number in this phase. The remaining 70 seats were scheduled for voting on November 17 in the second and final phase of polling for the 90-member state assembly.