Identify service voters from other states, Nepal in Meghalaya: NCP

The Nationalist Congress Party on Friday asked the Election Commission to delete name of service voters from other Indian states and Nepal serving in various defence establishments who have become voters in Meghalaya.

"These service people have already enrolled as voters in their respective states and they should be the service voters of their state only. How can service people from other states and Nepal become voters of Meghalaya just because they are posted here," NCP General Secretary S.P. Thapa told journalists after interacting with top Election Commission officials

"Most of the people recruited in various defence establishments located in Meghalaya were from other states and even from Nepal," Thapa said, adding people from Nepal are being recruited in the Gorkha Training Centre here.

A full bench of the Election Commission led by Chief Election Commissioner Achal Kumar Joti arrived here on a two-day visit to review preparations for the upcoming assembly polls.

Election Commission officials had met leaders of various political parties to understand their mind on the conduct the 10th Assembly elections as the five-year term of the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly will expire on March 6.

Various parties demanded tallying of the votes polled (from the EVMs) and voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) slips in all the 3,082 polling stations during counting for the upcoming assembly elections considering Meghalaya is a small state with only 60 constituencies.

Joti and his team also reviewed the poll preparedness with Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police besides officials of the central armed police forces.

Last week, a five-member team of the Election Commission headed by Deputy Election Commissioner Chandra Bhushan Kumar took stock of the state preparedness for the assembly elections.

--IANS

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