Death toll reaches 36 in Laos dam collapse, 98 missing
Vientiane, Aug 13: The death toll in the flooding caused by a dam collapse in Laos has climbed to 36 while 98 are still missing, national daily Vientiane Times reported on Monday.
On Saturday, we found the body of a three-year-old girl, bringing the number of known fatalities to 36, including three injured people who died in hospital, Deputy Director General of the General Political Department, Lao People's Army, Phalom Linthong said.
Laos army teams and rescue teams from Singapore are scouring the area for those still missing, Xinhua news agency reported.
"The operation is not easy because many areas remain flooded after a week of rain and we are constantly encountering challenges caused by thick mud, sand, and buried objects," Linthong said.
Rescue teams from Thailand, China, the Republic of Korea, and Laos arrived on the scene, when the flood hit on July 23, to aid in the search, rescue and relief operation, the daily noted.
Camps are being set up to accommodate the homeless after lower parts of Sanam Xay district was flooded following several days of rain.
The rebuilding of roads and bridges in the disaster-hit areas is being accelerated to enable relief supplies transportation.
An under-construction saddle dam of the Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy hydropower project, invested by South Korean, Thai and Lao companies, collapsed on July 23, unleashing a large amount of water and hitting some 13 villages of Sanam Xay district.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
