Bru voters casting votes through postal ballots

Amidst tight security, Bru voters lodged in six relief camps of Tripura today exercised their franchise by casting votes through postal ballots from 7 AM.

Polling in the relief camps would continue tomorrow if there was any voter who could not exercise franchise today, Mizoram Joint Chief Electoral Officer H Lalengmawia said.

"Polling was completely peaceful and conducted under tight security in the six relief camps - Asapara, Naisingpara, Hazacherra, Kaskau, Khakchangpara and Hamsapara in North Tripura district," he said.

The 11,612 Bru voters lodged in the relief camps were eligible to exercise franchise through postal ballots in their relief camps for the November 25 Mizoram polls.

86 polling officials, including seven nodal officers, who reached the relief camps yesterday morning, conducted the polls under the supervision of one special observer and six other observers, he said.

Platoons of armed police personnel were deployed in the polling booths, he said.

Tripura government officials, he said, had fully cooperated with the election officials sent from Mizoram.

The polling party reached Tripura via Zomuantlang hamlet as the activists of the Mizo Students Union had organised a blockade at the Mizoram-Tripura border river Langkaih in Kanhmun village on Sunday.

The students objected to the conduct of polling in the camps by sending polling officials from Mizoram as they alleged that the Brus refused to return to the state despite several pleas from the Centre, state government and the civil societies.

Chief Election Commissioner V S Sampath, during his recent Mizoram visit, had said that Bru voters lodged in the Tripura camps were allowed to exercise franchise in the camps in accordance with the Delhi High Court order in 1999.