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At least five persons were killed and more than 50 were injured in incidents of police firing, booth-capturing and bomb blasts during polling for civic bodies in Bihar on Sunday as 55 to 60 per cent of the electorate cast its vote.
The polling was relatively peaceful when compared to last year's panchayat election in the state, though sporadic incidents of booth-capturing, clashes and bomb explosions were reported from all over.
Elections were held after a gap of 18 years to four of the five municipal corporations in the state as also to 32 municipalities and 78 notified area committees. Elections for the Patna Municipal Corporation will be held on Tuesday.
The four municipal corporations that went to the polls on Sunday were Gaya, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga.
About 42.15 lakh voters cast their votes at 4,923 polling booths. Another 8.61 lakh voters are expected to vote at 1,049 polling booths in Patna on Tuesday.
Three of the five deaths on Sunday were reported from Gaya district. Among them was the son of a candidate in Gaya town, who was killed when a crude bomb he was allegedly making went off.
Bihar Military Police personnel opened fire at a booth in Gaya when a group tried to grab it, injuring three of the goons. Several persons were injured in other incidents of bomb explosions and police firing.
Sources said reports of bomb explosions came mostly from Munger, Muzaffarpur, Aurangabad and Nalanda districts.
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