Stage set for polling in Meghalaya

Shillong, Mar 2: The stage is all set for the single-phase Meghalaya Assembly elections that are scheduled to be held on Monday. Altogether 331 candidates, including six former chief ministers, are in fray for the elections to the eighth Meghalaya Assembly. Around 12,32,907 voters are expected to exercise their franchise during the elections.

The Election Commission has postponed the polling in Baghmara constituency after sitting Congress candidate S Sangma died of cancer. The election in the constituency has been re-scheduled for March 22. The Congress is battling the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), two major constituents of its Union coalition.

The Congress is contesting all 60 seats in the state, while the United Democratic Party (UDP) has fielded its candidate on 52 constituencies and the NCP is contesting 50 seats.

Adequate security personnel have been deployed to ensure free and fair elections. Out of 1582 polling stations in the state, 635 have been declared hyper sensitive and 194 as sensitive.

Forty companies of paramilitary forces, including BSF, have arrived in the state to assist the state police to ensure free and fair polling.

The eighth Meghalaya Legislative Assembly will be constituted by March 10.

ANI