Arunachal by-poll records 72 per cent voting

The by-election in Hayuliang assembly constituency in Arunachal Pradesh recorded 72 per cent voting till 5 p.m. on Saturday. The final percentage is likely to go up as officials are still awaiting statistics from some remote polling stations.

The polling remained peaceful in the remote constituency of the hill state, where 11,003 voters were to cast their votes across 81 polling stations.

"Till evening, we have recorded 72 per cent polling. However, polling percentage will go up as we are still waiting for reports from some of the remote polling stations," said a senior state election officer.

The by-poll was necessitated after former Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister and Hayuliang legislator Kalikho Pul allegedly hanged himself at the CM official residence in Itanagar on August 9.

Pitted against Bharatiya Janata Party's Dasanglu Pul, the wife of late Kalikho Pul, is Independent Yompi Kri, who is backed by the Congress.

The Congress wanted to field Yompi's husband and state's Public Health Engineering Department Chief Engineer Lapalum Kri, but he could not file his nomination due to non- acceptance of his voluntary retirement application by the state government.

--IANS

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