Rajnath Singh promises territorial integrity to poll-bound Manipur

Imphal, March 2: Hours ahead of the end of campaign activities in poll-bound Manipur, Union Home minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rajnath Singh promised justice for the Churachandpur incident during which nine persons were killed. Besides, he assured to ‘solve’ the political problem of the ‘Kuki-Zomi’ issue and to safeguard the identity and territorial integrity of Manipur, according to reports. Rajnath Singh made the promises during his last leg election rally at Churachandpur town, 65 km south of Imphal on Thursday. The day’s election rally was attended by BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav, Assam Finance Minister Hemanta Biswa Sarma, BJP state unit president Kh Bhabananda, BJP candidate for Churchandpur seat V Hangkhalian. The minister also promised that Manipur ‘will be developed as a model state in 5-10 years if the BJP is elected to power.’ He said that the prevalence of corruption in the state was one of the main reasons for its backwardness and high rate of unemployment. ‘There is no dearth of natural resources or lack of human talents in the state. It just happens that the Congress has deprived the people of its rightful growth for the past 15 years,’ Singh claimed. Talking about the economic blockade, he alleged that a Congress party ‘conspiracy must be behind it.’ The Home minister addressed a similar election rally at Tamei in Tamenglong district. Five hurt in Blast Around five persons including a woman were injured following an explosion at a private residence near the Shija hospital complex at Langol in Imphal on Thursday. Reports said the incident took place at the residence of one K Leiso around 5 pm. The reason behind the explosion was yet to be established at the time of this report going to the press. Campaigning ends in state for first phase Campaign activities for the first phase of the 11th Manipur Legislative Assembly Election closed at 3 pm today. Voting across 1,643 polling stations out of the total 2794, which will be covered on Real Time using smart phones for 38 assembly constituencies out of 60 seats, will be held from 7 am to 3 pm on March 4. The second phase of the polling will be held on March 8. The counting of votes will be done on March 11. Addressing the media here, Chief Electoral Officer of Manipur Vivek Kumar Dewangan said that election campaigns such as public rallies, public meetings and the use of loud speakers are prohibited after 3 pm today. All political functionaries brought from outside a constituency and who are not voters of it should not remain in the constituency, he said. Kumar said that 280 companies of Central Paramilitary Forces and State Armed Forces from Assam, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh will be used during the election. Out of it, 30 companies will be deployed for ROP on National Highways. No state police will be used at the polling stations. A total of 2,228 underground cadres who signed Suspension of Operation (SoO) and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government will cast their votes through postal ballot at 14 designated camps, he added. He said that special teams have been deployed to check borders of the state to prohibit movement of liquor, narcotic substances and to check infiltration. The CEO of Manipur appealed to voters to refrain from proxy voting. Stern action will be taken according to the instructions of the Election Commission of India, it was informed. For the first time, volunteers of the NCC, NSS and Bharat Scout & Guides will be assisting during the elections. CCTVs have been installed at 71 check posts out of which 46 are covered on On-line mode. Special arrangements have been made for senior citizens and differently-able voters. Joint CEO Hrisheekesh Modak gave a power point presentation on IT applications and mobile applications prepared in-house by the CEO office. For the first time, 100 percent web streaming will be done at all the polling stations. Flying Squads will be tracked using GPS to check their status. All the polling stations will be tracked using GIS. State Nodal Officer (Observer & Media/Communication) Ng Uttam Singh said that the display of advertisements in print and electronic media was prohibited in and around the polling area. Poll analysis or exit polls are not allowed until 5 pm of March 8. Pre-poll analysis or opinion polls are also prohibited before 48-hours of the first phase of elections. Any kind of advertisements in the print media or on e-paper is prohibited without pre-media certification from state / district-level MCMC. A 24x7 media centre will be opened at the CEO’s office from Friday. The official in charge will be N. Krishnakumar, Assistant Publicity Officer (Press) of Information and Public Relations department, Government of Manipur. He can be contacted at 9436038951. Also, one may dial the toll free number 1950. Similarly, Electronic Media Monitoring Cell (EMMC) has been opened in New Delhi to monitor election related news.