Chhattisgarh Assembly elections: 70 per cent turnout in phase one; 5 commandos injured in encounters with Naxals

Chhattisgarh Assembly elections 2018 LIVE updates: In the first hour of the polling, 13% voting was recorded till 8:00 am at the seats where voting had started at 7:00 am. Till 10:00 am, 10.7% voter turnout was recorded in the first phase of elections.

बैकग्राउंड

Chattisgarh Assembly Election 2018: Chhattisgarh is undergoing elections for 10 out of 18 assembly constituencies in the first phase, to be the first of the five poll-bound states to go to polls, amid constant naxal threats. The 18 seats which are going to poll today are of the southern part of the state, which are Naxal affected areas . Voting began for the first phase of Chhattisgarh elections under a tight security blanket comprising over 1.25 lakh police and paramilitary personnel. Of the 18 seats going to polling in the first phase, 12 are reserved for Scheduled Tribe (ST) while one is for Scheduled Caste (SC) category.  The second phase of polls will see voting in 72 seats on November 20. In the first phase, 190 candidates are in the fray and as per electoral rolls, there are 31,80,014 voters. Women voters outnumber men for the first phase of polling, with 16,22,492 female voters on the rolls against 15,57,435 men. There are 87 third gender voters as well. As many as 4,336 polling booths have been set up for the first phase and 19,079 polling personnel have been deployed. Prominent candidates: Among the prominent candidates who will try their electoral luck are Chief Minister Raman Singh, state ministers Kedar Kashyap (Narayanpur) and Mahesh Gagda (Bijpaur), as well as BJPs Kanker Lok Sabha MP Vikram Usendi (Antagarh). In the first phase, the prestige of nine sitting Congress MLAs -Manoj Singh Mandavi (Bhanupratappur), Mohan Lal Markam (Kondagaon), Lakheshwar Baghel (Bastar), Deepak Kumar Baij (Chitrakot), Devati Karma (Dantewada), Kawasi Lakhma (Konta), Girwar Janghel (Khairagarh), Santram Netam (Keshkal) and Daleshwar Sahu (Dongargaon) is at stake.

12/11/2018 19:16:30

Around 70 per cent voter turnout was registered in the first phase of the Chhattisgarh Assembly polls. A voter turnout of 61.47 per cent was recorded in Kondagaon, 63.51 per cent in Keshkal, 62 per cent in Kanker, 58 per cent in Bastar, 49 per cent in Dantewada, 70.14 per cent in Khairagarh, 71 per cent in Dongargarh, 71 per cent in Dongargaon and 72 per cent in the Khujji constituency.

12/11/2018 18:38:09

Around 70 per cent voter turnout was registered in the first phase of the Chhattisgarh Assembly polls. A voter turnout of 61.47 per cent was recorded in Kondagaon, 63.51 per cent in Keshkal, 62 per cent in Kanker, 58 per cent in Bastar, 49 per cent in Dantewada, 70.14 per cent in Khairagarh, 71 per cent in Dongargarh, 71 per cent in Dongargaon and 72 per cent in the Khujji constituency.

12/11/2018 17:08:19

A total of 56.58 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 4.30 pm in the first phase of Chhattisgarh assembly elections including 61.47 per cent in Kondagaon; 63.51 per cent in Keshkal; 62 per cent in Kanker; 58 per cent in Bastar; 49 per cent in Dantewada; 60.5 per cent in Khairagarh; 64 per cent in Dongargarh; 65.5 per cent in Khujji.

12/11/2018 17:08:04

A total of 56.58 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 4.30 pm in the first phase of Chhattisgarh assembly elections including 61.47 per cent in Kondagaon; 63.51 per cent in Keshkal; 62 per cent in Kanker; 58 per cent in Bastar; 49 per cent in Dantewada; 60.5 per cent in Khairagarh; 64 per cent in Dongargarh; 65.5 per cent in Khujji.

12/11/2018 15:50:15

47.18 per cent voter turnout recorded till 3 pm. A thick security blanket comprising over 1.25 lakh police and paramilitary personnel was thrown across the 18 constituencies as they fall under the Naxal-hit areas of Bastar, Kanker, Sukma, Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur, Kondagaon and Rajnandgaon districts.

12/11/2018 15:33:55

Nearly 38 per cent electorate cast their votes till 2 pm in 18 Assembly constituencies in the first phase of Chhattisgarh elections. Voting in nine seats of Bastar division and one seat in Rajnandgaon district began at 7 am and will conclude at 3 pm, while in the other eight seats, it started at 8 am and will culminate at 5 pm.

12/11/2018 13:59:44

Bijapur Encounter: The skirmish took place at a forest in Pamed area, located around 500 km from the state capital Raipur, when a team of security personnel was patrolling in view of the voting going on in the region.

12/11/2018 14:00:46

Bijapur Encounter: In the encounter between security forces and Naxals in Bijapur, two CobBRA personnel were injured. The encounter broke out at around 12: 20 pm in Bijapur’s Pamed even as the voting for the first phase of the assembly polls was underway.

12/11/2018 13:18:25

Voter turnout was recorded 25.15% at 1:00 pm in the first phase of the polls.

12/11/2018 13:27:03

103-year-old lady turned up at the polling booth in Gorgunda's Devarpalli to cast her vote.

12/11/2018 12:57:01

Encounter broke out between security forces and Naxals in Bijapur's Pamed area at around 12:20 pm today. Firing underway.

12/11/2018 12:50:44

Voters should go by the the mantra 'Phele matdaan phir jalpaan': PM Modi addressing rally in Bilaspur

12/11/2018 12:49:12

'I have been told that people have come out in large numbers to cast their votes in the Bastar region. I have faith that people will also vote in large numbers in the second phase of elections', says PM Modi in Bilaspur

12/11/2018 12:49:58

'I have been told that people have come out in large numbers to cast their votes in the Bastar region. I have faith that people will also vote in large numbers in the second phase of elections', says PM Modi in Bilaspur

12/11/2018 12:47:22

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses rally in Bilaspur of the poll-going state Chhattisgarh.

12/11/2018 12:33:27

Election Commission refutes the report of malfunctioning EVMs, says certain sources are spreading rumours. As per the EC, voting is going on smoothly. If at all, any glitches are noticed, issue is sorted out as quickly as possible.

12/11/2018 11:42:57

In the naxal infested Rajnandgaon District-Mohala-Manpur assembly constituency 39% voter turnout has been recorded; while 26% turnout in Keshkal has been recorded; Konta and Bastar recorded 19% and 17 % respectively.

12/11/2018 11:34:41

In the naxal infested Rajnandgaon District-Mohala-Manpur assembly constituency 39% voter turnout has been recorded; while 26% turnout in Keshkal has been recorded; Konta and Bastar recorded 19% and 17 % respectively.

12/11/2018 11:39:26

As per voter turn out figures available as yet, 16.24% turnout overall in the 18 poll-going assembly constituencies in Chhattisgarh.

12/11/2018 11:33:54

Rajnandgaon: Huge voter turnout at the polling station in Naxal-affected Manpur's Pardoni village was reported, where Naxali posters and banners asking people to boycott elections had been seen.

12/11/2018 11:12:21

A differently-abled person casts vote at Motipur polling booth.

12/11/2018 11:11:37

A differently-abled person casts vote at Motipur polling booth.

12/11/2018 11:02:52

Three IEDs have been detected near a polling booth in Konta's Banda and CRPF Bomb disposal squad is in the process of defusing. Polling is underway at a makeshift booth under a tree.

12/11/2018 10:41:10

10.7% voter turnout recorded till 10 am in the first phase of voting in 18 assemblies, reports ANI

12/11/2018 10:24:53

Sukma: An IED was detected near a polling booth in Konta's Banda. Pictures of voters queued outside a makeshift polling booth established under a tree, away from the actual polling booth.

12/11/2018 10:05:04

53 polling stations out of the total of 4336 reported delayed start of polling due to technical reasons, however, 100% polling stations have reported smooth polling with long queues outside: Election Commission

12/11/2018 09:50:28

Prime Minister Narendra Modi leaves for Chhattisgarh, where he is scheduled to hold a public rally in Bilaspur district.

12/11/2018 09:44:41

A visually impaired person casts his vote at a polling station in Dantewada's Geedam

12/11/2018 09:36:34

13% voting recorded till 8:00 am in the seats that begun polling at 7:00 am

12/11/2018 09:32:40

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to come out in large numbers to exercise their franchise. In a tweet, he requested voters of the state to participate in large numbers in "the festival of democracy".

12/11/2018 08:36:57

Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat says
"polling is being held in 18 constituencies of Chhattisgarh today, they are Left Wing Extremism affected area. Polls being held in 2 phases to provide special security in these 18 constituencies.These 18 areas are kept in 1st phase so that paramilitary forces remain fresh."

12/11/2018 08:02:33

Dantewada: 1-2 kilograms of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blasted by naxals near Tumakpal camp in Katekalyan block, news agency ANI reported.

12/11/2018 07:55:20

Polling time in 10 constituencies - Mohla-Manpur, Antagarh, Bhanupratappur, Kanker, Keshkal, Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur and Konta - is from 7 am to 3 pm, due to the Naxal menace.
In the remaining eight constituencies - Khairgarh, Dongargarh, Rajnandgaon, Dongargaon, Khujji, Bastar, Jagdalpur and Chitrakot - it is from 8 am till 5 pm.

12/11/2018 07:54:58

"Polling in nine constituencies of Bastar division and one in Rajnandgaon district has begun from 7 am and will conclude at 3 pm, while in the rest of the constituencies the polling time is from 8 am to 5 pm," a poll official said.