Voting for Bengal rural bodies begins
Kolkata, May 14: Polling for electing 38,616 representatives across three tiers to West Bengal Panchayat (rural) bodies began at 7am on Monday.
Long queues were seen outside several booths as people from all social and economic backgrounds patiently waited for their turn to exercise their democratic right.
Pre-poll surveys have predicted that the coming rural elections could provide an emphatic answer to the questions, with the BJP predicted to leave the Left Front and the Congress far behind and emerge as the main rival to the Trinamool -- which, the surveys claims, would walk away with the bulk of the seats at all three levels -- panchayat, panchayat samiti and the zila parishad.
As the nomination process started last month, all the opposition parties accused the Trinamool of indulging in strongarm tactics to prevent them from filing nominations.
Television pictures broadcast across the channels showed groups of armed mobs gathering before the offices of the Block Development Officers and the Sub-Divisional Officers in a number of districts and stopping prospective candidates from entering the poll fray.
The matter reached the Calcutta High Court, and the State Election Commission (SEC) extended the deadline for submitting nominations by a day, only to reverse the order in less than 12 hours, allegedly under pressure from the Trinamool.
The judiciary then put a stay on the elections, then scheduled to be held on May 1, 3 and 5. More bitter legal battles followed, at the end of which the SEC declared May 14 as the new polling date.
Statistics reveal that of the total 58,692 seats in the three tiers of rural local bodies, 20,076 seats or 34.2 per cent have already been decided uncontested, with the Trinamool bagging a whopping proportion of these seats.
These seats include 16,814 of the total 48,650 panchayats, 3,059 of the total 9,217 panchayat samitis and 203 of the total 825 zila parishads.
The Supreme Court has now asked the SEC not to issue winning certificates in case of the uncontested seats.
The SEC has, on the other hand, said all arrangements had been made for providing security for the polls. Around 71,500 armed personnel would be on duty, manning every booth.
Armed forces have also arrived from Assam, Odisha, Sikkim and Andhra Pradesh to strengthen security arrangements.
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Protests in Jammu region over VDG killings, Kishtwar observes shutdown
Kishtwar/Jammu (PTI): There were sporadic protests in the Jammu region on Friday over the killings of two Village Defence Guards by terrorists the previous day, while a complete shutdown was observed in Kishtwar with demonstrations against Pakistan.
Security has been beefed up in Kishtwar district -- from where the two Village Defence Guards were abducted and killed -- as people came out in large numbers to give vent to their anger and demanded "immediate elimination" of the terrorists involved in the killings.
All shops and businesses were closed and traffic was off the road in the district, while there was thin attendance in schools and other educational institutions.
Protests were also reported from Kuntwara, Thakurie, Paddar and other areas early this morning, with slogans of ''Pakistan Murdabad'' being raised and a sit-in on the roads.
Terrorists killed two VDGs after abducting them in the higher reaches of the Kishtwar district. Jaish-e-Mohammad offshoot Kashmir Tigers has claimed responsibility for the attack. A massive joint search operation is underway by police and the Army in the dense forest area following the brutal killings.
As the news spread about the killings, hundreds gathered in the Drabshalla area of the district Thursday morning, chanting 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai', and burning tyres and blocking roads. They also raised slogans against Pakistan and terrorists.
In the Kishtwar town, a women-led protest march was organised by the Sanatan Dharam Sabha. hey sat on a dharna at the main chowk, burning tyres and the Pakistani flag.
"We want decisive action against Pakistan, its terrorists and its ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir. There should be massive crackdown to eradicate terrorists and its supporters," said Satoshi Devi, one of the protestors.
Drabshalla resident Kuldeep Singh said, "This kind of incident has not happened in this area for a long time. The victims were grazing their cattle when terrorists kidnapped and killed them. This is an act of cowardice. We cannot tolerate this. People stand firmly against terrorism."
"We demand a massive operation to eliminate the terrorists involved in this act. Security forces should sweep the entire hills so that people feel safe to go out to graze cattle in these areas," he added.
The Sanatan Dharam Sabha urged the general public in Kishtwar to fully support the bandh call and keep all their business establishments, educational institutions and shops closed.
Kishtwar MLA Shugan Parihar condemned the killings and said, "I am deeply saddened by the horrific killings of our VDG brothers, Nazir Ahmed and Kuldeep Kumar, in a heinous act of terrorism in the forest area of Kuntwara, Kishtwar district. I offer my heartfelt condolences to the families of these brave martyrs".
She added, "The grief and pain of losing someone in this manner is something I deeply feel."
In Jammu, protests were held by the Kishtwari Sangathan and they burnt the effigy of National Conference (NC) and its leaders. They demanded beefing up security areas of Kishtwar where the minority community lives, and carrying out operation to clear the hills of terrorists.
Protests were also held in Udhamour, Sanva, Kathua and Reasi districts.
