67 per cent voting recorded in first phase of C'garh polls

67 per cent of the 29,33,200 voters in the Naxal-affected Bastar region and Rajnandgaon district today exercised their franchise in the first phase of Chhattisagrh assembly elections, where violence by Naxals who have called for a poll boycott, left a CRPF jawan dead.
After a slow start, polling for the 18 constituencies picked up as the day progressed and the tribal-dominated region witnessed a large turnout amid high security across the region, which will decide the fate of Chief Minister Raman Singh and his three ministers.
Rajnandgaon, the home constituency of Raman Singh, recorded the highest 79 per cent voting out of 18 constituencies while one of the worst insurgency-hit Bijapur constituency witnessed the lowest 24 per cent voting.

Other constituencies where polling took place today are Bhanupratappur (70per cent), Antagarh (58per cent), Kanker (76per cent), Keshkal (77per cent), Kondagaon (78per cent), Narayanpur (62per cent), Bastar (60per cent), Jagdalpur (67per cent), Chitrakot (61 per cent), Konta (40per cent) and Dantewada (67 per cent) of Bastar region and Khairagarh (71 per cent), Dongargarh (72 per cent), Dongargaon (76 per cent), Khujji (78 per cent ) and Mohla-Manpur (75 per cent) of Rajnandgaon.
"As per the voting figures till 5 PM, 67 per cent polling had been registered in the 18 constituencies and the percentage was expected to go up," Chief Electoral Officer Sunil Kujur told reporters.

Amid tight security, polling in thirteen Naxal-hit constituencies of Bastar and Rajnandgaon concluded at 3 PM, while those in other five constituencies of Rajnandgaon concluded at 5 pm, he said.
The polling figure may exceed to the previous election of 2008 which had recorded 66.85 per cent voting in these 18 constituencies as people waited to cast their ballot in several polling stations of five constituencies even after 1700 hrs, the time of close of poll.
Re-polling will be held at two polling booths-- Chhote Pakhanjore and Sitram -- in Kanker district as polling officials could not reach there owing to Naxal resistance, Kujur said.