The Election Commission of India on Tuesday ordered re-polling at 168 polling stations in Tripura West parliamentary constituency on May 12 from 7 am to 5 pm. The polls in the constituency were held in the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections on April 11.
The seat has 1,679 polling booths, according to The Indian Express.
The commission declared the voting held at these polling stations void based on reports submitted by the chief electoral officer, special observer, general observers and the returning officer. The state has two Lok Sabha seats – Tripura West and Tripura East.
The Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) have been demanding re-polls alleging large-scale rigging, booth capturing, intimidation and attacks by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, according to IANS. Both parties had also threatened to move the Supreme Court if the Election Commission did not order fresh polls or re-polling at 50% booths in the constituency, The Times of India had reported.
Tripura Pradesh Congress Vice-President Pijush Kanti Biswas alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party leaders in Delhi were influencing the Election Commission to hold re-polls in only a few polling stations to ensure their victory.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) leaders had staged demonstrations in Agartala and Delhi on April 16 to press their demands. The BJP had dismissed the accusations as false and concocted.
Polling in Tripura East parliamentary constituency was postponed from April 18 to April 23 after the polling body said the law and order situation was not conducive to holding free and fair polls.
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In Tripura, BJP is accused of poll-rigging and intimidating voters by opposition parties
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