Polling in Manihari begins tomorrow amidst tight security

Katihar, Dec 3 (UNI) Over 1.57 lakh electorate will decide the fate of 11 candidates when the polling for by-election to Manihari assembly constituency in Bihar begins at 0700 hours under hawk eyes of the security personnel.

District Magistrate, Katihar, Pran Mohan Thakur today said that five companies of central paramilitary forces have been deputed in the constituency for peaceful polling in all 184 booths, of them 102 identified as hyper-sensitive.

The border with neighbouring West Bengal and Jharkhand has been sealed to check influx of criminal elememts and trouble mongers from across the states.

Security personnel on four motor boats would underatke intensive patrolling in the Ganga to check the movement of booth grabbers from across the river. No private boats and steamers would be allowed to move in the river within the perimeter of the constituency, Mr Thakur added.

He said that air patrolling in far flung areas of the constituency would be conducted to keep an eye on possible trouble mongers, if needed.

Earlier, RJD president and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, Union Minister and senior Congress leader Shakeel Ahmad and others campaigned in the constituency which continued for more than 15 days.

A fierce contest between Congress candidate Hamid Mubarak, who is the joint candidate of the UPA and JD(U) candidate Vishwanath Singh, is on the cards in the segment.

Altogether 11 candidates including that of Congress and JD(U) are in the fray where polling is scheduled to take place on December 4 while counting would be taken up on December 7.

By-election for the seat has been necessitated following demise of sitting Congress MLA Mobarak Hussain.

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