MCD bypolls see 31.3 per cent voter turnout, votes to be counted on Dec 3
New Delhi (PTI): Voter turnout in the MCD bypolls to 12 wards on Sunday remained subdued, with the overall polling recorded at 31.3 per cent till 4 pm, according to the State Election Commission.
The voting began at 7.30 am and ended at 5.30 pm.
Among the 12 wards where polling was held, Chandni Mahal recorded the highest turnout at 41.95 per cent.
It was followed by Sangam Vihar-A with 38.62 per cent and Mundka with 37.82 per cent voter participation.
Greater Kailash registered the lowest turnout at just 20.87 per cent, while Dwarka-B recorded 23.72 per cent polling. Chandni Chowk saw 27.91 per cent turnout, Ashok Vihar 28.13 per cent and Shalimar Bagh-B 28.28 per cent.
The votes will be counted on December 3. The results are expected to reveal the mood of voters in the national capital after the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) comprehensive victory in the Assembly elections in February this year.
The State Election Commission has set up 580 polling booths across 143 locations for the 12 bypolls. A total of 2,320 election commission personnel, 580 home guards and 2,265 other personnel, along with 13 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces are facilitating the electoral exercise.
The fate of 51 candidates, including 26 women, will be decided at the ballot. The BJP has fielded eight women candidates, the highest. This was followed by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with six women candidates and Congress five.
The election is being closely observed as the AAP and the BJP will take on each other again after the Assembly polls. The BJP won 48 out of the 70 seats in the Assembly elections and returned to power in Delhi after 27 years, ousting the AAP.
Of the 12 Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) wards, nine were earlier held by the BJP and three by the AAP.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Pak police registers case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on LeT co-founder
_vb_37.jpeg)
Lahore (PTI): Pakistan's Punjab Police on Friday registered a case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) co-founder Amir Hamza, who suffered bullet injuries in the attack in Lahore.
On Thursday, two unidentified gunmen riding on a bike opened fire on the vehicle of the private TV channel 24NewsHD TV, owned by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, on Peco Road in Lahore near the TV channel's office.
In the attack, Hamza suffered bullet injuries.
"The FIR has been registered against unidentified gunmen, but it is sealed forthwith," a senior police officer told PTI.
He said the intelligence agencies have taken over this case from the police, and they are currently investigating the matter.
The channel's religious programme host Justice (retd.) Nazir Ahmed Ghazi and Hamza were in the vehicle when it was attacked. Hamza was shifted to a hospital for treatment.
Punjab police on Friday said that "upon receiving information about the incident, the SSP Operations immediately reached the scene and a high alert was imposed in the area. SSP Operations Tauqeer Naeem also met the affected individuals. Thankfully, all present in the vehicle remained safe during the firing."
It further said senior police officers of the Township and Chung, along with a heavy police contingent, were present at the scene.
"Police collected evidence from the site and initiated an investigation. Efforts to arrest the suspects are underway using CCTV footage and geo-fencing techniques. Search and sweep operations are being conducted at various locations, with scrutiny of suspicious individuals ongoing," police said.
It added that those involved in the incident will be traced and arrested soon.
The police sources said that Hamza has been shifted to his residence in Jauhar Town, Lahore, where police and agency personnel met him.
The leadership of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a political front of Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's banned Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD), including Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed, also called on him.
TV host retired Justice Ghazi, who remained unhurt in the attack, remained a legal counsel for Hafiz Saeed, they said.
The PMML has strongly condemned the attack on Hamza and demanded that those involved in the incident be arrested immediately.
Hamza is regarded as LeT's second most important leader after its chief Hafiz Saeed, who has been in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail since 2019 after getting convicted for several years in terror financing cases.
Hamza has been designated as a terrorist by the US. In the past, he served as the head of LeT's "special campaigns" department.
In 2018, Hamza formed a fundraising group for the LeT following a ban on the JuD and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation by the Pakistani government.
_vb_22.jpeg)
_vb_35.jpeg)
