More polling booths in Bastar region flagged as ‘critical’
Given the increased security threat posed by Naxals during the Lok Sabha election, the Chhattisgarh State Election Commission (SEC) has adjusted its strategy compared to the Assembly polls held last November. There has been an increase in the number of critical polling stations and those scheduled for relocation, and an uptick in the expected helicopter dropoffs. An official said due to better visibility during the summer months, the Maoists are more active and target those from the administration necessitating such changes.
“As many as 1,726 polling stations — all in the Maoistaffected Bastar region — have been marked as critical this time compared to 1,670 such polling stations during the Assembly polls. The number of polling stations marked as ‘vulnerable’ will however remain the same at 109,” said the official.
The EC definition for critical includes several quantifiable parameters such as voter turnout below a certain threshold, past incidents of violence, more than 75% of the eligible votes being polled for a single candidate etc., explained the official, adding that the “vulnerable” tag is based on an onground analysis of the situation by the police and the local administration.
The official added that the number of relocations — i.e. polling station being taken further away from a village due to threat — will be almost doubled from 151 in the Assembly elections to 289 this time.
Several violent incidents were reported during the Assembly election in which security personnel had both been injured.