ELECTIONS

60 per cent polling in Rajasthan

By Onkar Singh in Jaipur
December 01, 2003

Polling in Rajasthan on Monday ended peacefully, barring stray incidents of violence, with 60 per cent of the 3.40 crore voters exercising their franchise to send 200 representatives to the state legislative assembly.

Dholpur recorded the maximum 65 per cent polling, followed by Hanumangarh, Sawai Madhopur and Tonk at 60 per cent each, an official spokesman said in Jaipur.

Repolling is being considered at nine polling stations where EVMs were damaged, Chief Electoral Officer Lalit Kothari said.

Additional Director General of Police S N Jairath said polling was by and large peaceful.

An angry mob smashed an Electronic Voting Machine under the Bamanwas police station. A fake voter smashed an EVM at Peethala village of Jaisalmer district. He was arrested. Another EVM was damaged by a group at Behaj.

Polling was by and large peaceful in the 15 assembly segments in Jaipur.

Although the EVMs quickened the pace of voting, slow identification of voters and missing names in voters' lists caused problems at several places.

At some polling booths voters could not vote despite showing their ID cards.

"Election Commission got crores of rupees spent on preparation of voter ID cards but what is their use if one cannot vote," angry voters were heard asking reporters.

In outer city areas, residents of an entire colony inside the sprawling Institute of Public Administration campus were dismayed to find their names missing from voters' lists.

 

Onkar Singh in Jaipur
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