E-Paper
Madhupur records 71.60% polling
Amid panic triggered by soaring cases of coronavirus infection across the state, the Madhupur by-election came to an end peacefully on Saturday with brisk polling
Amid panic triggered by soaring cases of coronavirus infection across the state, the Madhupur by-election came to an end peacefully on Saturday with brisk polling. The assembly constituency registered 71.60 % voting, recording a decline by 2.4% against the 2019 general Assembly elections, election officials said.
Six candidates, including independent ones, were in the fray for the by-election, the result of which will be declared on May 2. Chief electoral officer (CEO), K Ravi Kumar said, “The bypoll passed off peacefully. Enthusiasm among voters was visible since morning.”
Even though all six candidates were confident of winning the election, the main battle, however, was witnessed between Grand Alliance candidate Hafizul Hasan Ansari and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Ganga Narayan Singh.
Son of former minority welfare minister late Haji Hussain Ansari, Hasan, who was contesting the poll on the ticket of ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), claimed, “People from all castes, creed and religions have voted one-sided in the name of Haji Saab. I extend my thanks to the voters for their support.”
On the other hand, BJP’s Singh also seemed also confident of his win. “People of the region have already made up their minds and they are going to make the BJP candidate win by a good margin,” said senior BJP leader Pradip Sinha.
Braving the fear of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, voters, especially women, stood in beelines at polling stations since the process commenced around 7.00am amid tight security. The polling concluded around 6pm.
A local Sangita Devi, who exercised her franchise at a booth in Madhupur urban area, said, “Initially, I was little worried due to the prevailing situation of coronavirus infection. However, precautionary measures taken at the booth were satisfying.”
Similarly, one Md Sahud Ansari, who cast his vote at a booth set up in Doon Public School, said, “We were made to follow Covid-19 protocols upon entering the booth such as maintaining social distancing and use of mask. There was arrangement of hand sanitizers. Besides, our temperature were also measured through thermal scanner.”
As many as 487 polling stations were set up and circles were marked at a distance of six feet at every booth to facilitate social distancing between voters.
The Deoghar administration also set up 17 model booths. These booths were decorated with all basic needs such as toilets, drinking water, electricity, ensured. The model booths saw a decent voter turnout.
