Voting underway for historic civic body polls in Nagaland
Kohima (PTI): Polling was underway for elections to 25 civic bodies in Nagaland on Wednesday morning, amid tight security arrangements, an SEC official said.
This was a historic election in the northeastern state as the polling to three municipalities and 22 town councils was being conducted after a gap of 20 years.
The urban local body polls were being held for the first time with 33 per cent women reservation, said the official at the Nagaland State Election Commission.
The government had announced elections to urban local bodies several times in the past but objections from tribal bodies and civil society organisations against reservation for women, and tax on land and properties had held back the polls.
Voting began at 7.30 am and will continue till 4 pm.
"Polling has been peaceful so far. Security has been beefed up for the elections," the SEC officials said.
Over 2.23 lakh voters, including 1,13,521 women, are eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fate of 523 candidates from 11 political parties.
Instead of EVMs, voting was being conducted in 420 polling stations through ballot papers, he said.
Meanwhile, the Eastern Nagaland Peoples' Organisation (ENPO) has decided that the six districts in the region will not participate in the elections.
ENPO, the apex body of seven Naga tribes living in the six eastern districts, has been demanding a 'Frontier Nagaland Territory', claiming that the region has been neglected for years.
There are 14 town councils in the ENPO area. As many as 59 nominations were accepted from the area but the tribal bodies compelled the candidates to withdraw their nominations.
The ENPO also refrained from participating in the April 19 Lok Sabha polls for the lone seat in the state.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
