Even as polling, presiding officers and security personnel were leaving for their polling booths from the office of the Imphal West Deputy Commissioner’s office in Manipur on Sunday, Immas (mothers) gathered in Khetrigao constituency in Imphal East demanding justice for their candidate, Wahengbam Rojit, known as ‘Bullet’, who was shot at.
“Last night, around 11pm, my brother was meeting party members in his constituency when motorcycle-borne youth started to loiter around. Initially, they seemed like drug addicts, but they fired at my brother from point blank range. It’s jungle raj here. Both money and gun power are used in the elections. My brother is a strong candidate. Doctors said my brother’s condition is stable now,” said Wahengbam General, Rojit’s brother.
According to the state police, the assailants managed to flee after attacking the Janata Dal (United) candidate. The incident took place amid armed escorts and a large number of supporters.
“They wanted to kill our candidate. We have to the Election Commission of India and I hope that strong action will be taken. This is the first such incident in the past 40 years. It is politically motivated. We suspect even the security personnel who were present. Why didn’t they react? They may have given his whereabouts to the attackers,” Hangkhanpao, Manipur state president, JDU.
“I am sure that our arrow will be the answer to their bullet,” Aneel Hegde, national coordinator, JD (U).
The Congress, meanwhile, accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of poll-related violence and even approached the ECI to intervene, after the banned Kuki National Organization issued a statement supporting the BJP.
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According to Rajesh Agarwal, state chief electoral officer of Manipur, 60 FIRs have been registered in the past 40 days.
“The poll preparation for the first phase is completed. Adequate forces have been deployed in the hilly districts, A majority of the polling booths of Churachandpur and Kangpokpi are hypersensitive. We are trying to ensure Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) presence in every booth. We have taken note of the letter asking people to vote for a particular political party. We have received complaints of intimidation in five to six constituencies,” said Agarwal.
Of the total 60, 38 seats are up for grabs in the first phase of polls on February 28. In the first phase, a total of 173 candidates are in the fray, including 15 women. A total of 9,895 polling personnel have reached 1,721 polling stations. Of the 38 seats, 29 are in valley districts of Imphal East, Imphal West and Bishnupur, while nine seats are spread across Churachandpur, Kangpokpi and Pherzawl. Among the key candidates are chief minister and BJP candidate from Heingang N Biren Singhhis cabinet colleague Thongam Biswajit Singh, speaker Y Khemchand Singh from Singjamei, deputy CM and NPP candidate Yumnam Joykumar from Uripok and Manipur Congress president N Lokesh Singh from Nambol. The ally in the present government, Naga People’s Front (NPF) has not fielded a single candidate in the first phase of polls.
Firebrand leader and JD (U) candidate Thounaojam Brindawho was the additional superintendent of police (headquarters), is also contesting in the first phase of polling from the Yaiskul constituency.
The BJP, which had secured 21 seats in the 60-member Assembly in the last Assembly polls in 2017 and wrested the power for the first time, stitching together a coalition government with the support of four NPP MLAs, four NPF members, the lone Trinamool Congress MLA and an independent member.
The BJP, NPP and NPF are contesting separately and have put up candidates against each other.
In the first phase, 12,22,713 voters, including 6,29,276 women, will decide the fate of 173 candidates. Voting will take place between 7am and 6pm. The counting of votes will take place on March 10.
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