Nagaland LS poll: RO submits report to ECI on excess voting

Principal Correspondent KOHIMA, APRIL 29 ACTING on the complaints lodged by the Nagaland Congress party that proxy voting marred the April 9 Lok Sabha elections in Nagaland, the Returning Officer has already send the re-verified report of the polling stations in the state. Congress candidate for the Lok Sabha election in the state, KV Pusa on April 25 had submitted representation to the Election Commission of India alleging mass proxy voting and rigging in over 1000 polling stations, wherein about 46 had recorded over 100% voting while another 984 had over 90% voting.The Congress had been demanding that the ECI should either declare the elections as null and void or hold fresh polls in the polling stations. Sources said, taking serious cognizance of the complaint, the ECI had reported sought report of the State Returning Officer. Subsequently, the RO had directed the District Returning Officers to properly verify the votes polled in the polling stations. The DROs have already submitted the report and it has been forwarded to the Election Commission, official sources confirmed here today. However, the final decision of the ECI is awaited. ENPO to oppose vote counting  without fresh poll in Ladaigarh PS Fresh polling likely in Ladaigarh Polling Station No. 1 under Tamlu Assembly constituency in Longleng district VOTING on April 9 could not be held in the polling station as Assam Police did not allow entry of Polling Officials to the village because of the border problem between the two states, which led to denial of voting right to 302 electorates of the village. However, the general observer for the area deputed by ECI failed to recommend re-poll while the following day even the Scrutiny Committee including the State Returning Officer and two general observers of the ECI also did not recommend re-poll for Ladaigarh PS. Nonetheless, the Eastern Nagaland Peoples’ Organisation (ENPO) after series of meetings have communicated to the state government that unless fresh poll is held for Ladaigarh PS, it will not allow counting of votes in any of the polling stations of the four districts on the result day – May 16. ENPO districts have a total 616 polling stations in 20 Assembly segments with over 3.6 lakh electorates. Highly placed sources also revealed that the ENPO leaders also called on the Chief Secretary in Kohima today and submitted relevant documents to take up with the ECI with regard to the Ladaigarh PS. Meanwhile, ARO for Parliamentary election in Nagaland, L. Limsong told this correspondent that meeting in this regard has also already been held at the Chief Secretary’s level of both the states. He revealed that both states have agreed to maintain 1991 Supreme Court order to maintain status quo. He also revealed that the State Chief Secretary with some senior bureaucrats would be soon leaving for Delhi to submit a detailed report on the issue to the ECI. He said both sides also mutually agreed that polls should be held in the area, but the place where the PS should be set up is yet to be decided. He further stated that after the Chief Secretary submits the final report it will depend on ECI to decide the place of voting for Ladaigarh.