E-Paper
Civic body polls: Haryana records over 70% turnout
The polling passed off peacefully across 1,961 booths, barring the complaints of minor clashes and bogus voting at some places
Haryana recorded over 70% turnout in the 28 municipal committee and 18 municipal council elections as the voters sealed the fate of over 3,500 candidates in the electronic voting machines (EVM) on Sunday.
The polling passed off peacefully across 1,961 booths, barring the complaints of minor clashes and bogus voting at some places.
The counting of the votes will be held on June 22.
According to the state election commission (SEC), over 70.4% voter turnout was recorded in the state till 10pm, with the highest 84.6% polling recorded in 13 booths of Bawal in Rewari district.
At least 70.2% polling was recorded in Jind district’s four civic bodies -- Safidon, Uchana, Narwana and Jind -- having the highest 216 polling booths in the state. In Kalka, 68.2% voter turnout was recorded in 97 polling booths.
State election commissioner Dhanpat Singh said that of the total 18,39,455 voters in 18 municipal councils and 28 municipalities, over 12. 95 lakh voters had cast their vote and the overall voter turnout was 70.4%.
“The polling was peaceful in the entire state and no untoward incident was reported anywhere,” the SEC said, adding that in some places, there was a defect in the EVM which was immediately resolved.
While the ruling BJP-JJP combine is contesting municipal council president’s polls on party symbols and on a seat-sharing arrangement, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) have also fielded their candidates on party symbols even as the Congress had decided not to contest the civic body polls on party symbol, saying the party would only support Independents.
Elaborate security arrangements were put in place and no major untoward incident was reported in the state even though four persons sustained injuries when two groups clashed over voting at Sonepat’s Ganaur. The injured were rushed to a government hospital, where they are undergoing treatment. None of them is critical, officials said.
Haryana Police also arrested three persons at Jhajjar’s Bahadurgarh and one at Fatehabad’s ward number 12 for casting fake votes.
There were reports of bogus polling in Ganaur and Hisar, where the voters alleged that their votes had been polled before they reached the polling booth. At Rohtak’s Meham, a man was arrested for casting a fake vote, police said.
The highest voter turnout of 84.6% was recorded in the 13 wards of Rewari district’s Bawali municipal council, while the polling at 13 booths of Sadhaura municipal committee of Yamunanagar district registered 78.2% turnout, and 79.4% turnout was seen in 45 wards of Sohana municipal council and 85.9% in Barwala municipal committee.
The average poll percentage at 140 booths of Bhiwani municipal council was 63.7% and 175 booths of the Jind municipal council recorded 65.7% voter turnout.
Bahadurgarh municipal council recorded 59% voter turnout at 123 booths, while 103 booths of the Kaithal municipal council reported 72.7% turnout.
Total 124 booths of Palwal municipal council recorded 63.9% voter turnout, while the poll percentage at the 76 booths of the Narnaul municipal council remained 74.7%. Kurukshetra’s Ismailabad, Pehowa and Ladwa have reported 76.6, 68.9 and 70.7% voter turnout, respectively.
In Naraingarh, 68.6% voters turned up to elect the next chairperson for the municipal committee.
(With inputs from Rohtak)
