70 pc polling for UP local bodies; stray incidents of violence

Lucknow, Nov 3 (UNI) One person was killed and four others injured even as an estimated 70 per cent of the electorate voted in the third and final phase of polling for the urban local bodies in Uttar Pradash today while rigging was reported from several parts of the state.

A Samajwadi Party supporter was killed in Ghiraur in Mainpuri district in poll related violence.

A Congress supporter Mohd Omar was cirtically injured in firing at Karhal in Mainpuri district, after a clash between the ruling Samajwadi Party and Congress supporters.

The vehicle of SP MP Dharmendra Yadav, nephew of Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, was also attacked by miscreants in the incident, after which at least three vehicles were torched by an irate mob.

Reports of groups clashes have been received from Deoria, Etah, Kannauj, Aligarh and Ghaziabad, where polling for Nagar Nigam was held.

In the first two phases, large-scale violence and rigging were witnessed in almost all parts of the state. One person was killed and over 70 others injured in poll-related violence in the two phases of polling.

In the final phase, polling for the Nagar Panchayat (town area) and Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam was held alongwith repolling at all the centres from where complaints of rigging and violence were received by the State Election Commission (SEC), during the first and second phase of polling held on October 28 and 31 respectively.

State Election Commissioner Aparmita Prasad Singh told UNI here about 70 per cent of the electorate had exercised their franchise in the polling.

''The election was by-and-large peaceful and there are only reports of minor clashes between rival political supporters,'' he claimed.

The SEC had received 56 complaints of booth capturing, violence and violation of model code of conduct in today's polling.

About 4.6 million electorate were eligible to exercise their franchise in 5,478 polling booths to elect 4,999 ward members in 410 UP Nagar Panchayats.

Altogether 3,015 candidates were in the fray for the chairman of the Nagar Panchayat, while 17,171 candidates were trying their luck for the ward members of the Nagar Panchayat.

Over a million voters were to elect 80 ward members and a mayor for the Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam polls.

SEC sources said repolling has been ordered for four booths of Jaithra Nagar Panchayat in Etah district, following complaints of excess voting, while in Rae Bareli the entire ward-7 of Parshadepur was cancelled and repolling has been ordered due to irregularities in ballot papers.

Similarly elections in ward number 19 of Moradabad Nagar Nigam was countermanded due to faulty election symbol. Saurikh Nagar panchayat of Kannuaj district, ward number 11, was countermanded as name of one candidate was found missing in the voter list, while in Mau Nagar Palika, elections for ward no-2 was countermanded as one of the candidate was convicted in a crime.

Meanwhile, the SEC has ordered repolling in nine booths of Kanpur Nagar Nigam, five booths of Kairana Nagar Palika and four booths of Shamli Nagar Palika.

All repolling would now be held on Sunday and counting of votes will be undertaken on November 6 from 0800 hrs.

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