Amid high security, the polling for Tripura Assembly began at 7 am on Thursday. As many as 259 candidates are in the fray for 60 Assembly seats today. The votes will be counted on March 2.
As of 9 am, the state witnessed a turnout of 14 per cent. The polling process was largely peaceful in the first two hours, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gitte Kirankumar Dinakarrao told reporters. He added that the "enthusiasm was palpable among the voters", especially women. "This indicates polls are being held in a free and fair manner," he said.
Chief Minister Manik Saha, who is contesting the polls from Town Bardowali constituency, was one of the first to cast vote. He expressed confidence that the BJP will secure an absolute majority in the Assembly elections. "I am 100 per cent confident that the BJP will secure absolute majority in the elections. The party may get more seats than it did the last time, he told reporters on his way to a polling booth at Maharani Tulsibati Girls' School here.
The first state to go to polls this year, Tripura is witnessing a three-pronged fight as BJP takes on the CPM-Congress alliance and the newest political party Tipra Motha.
The Tipra Motha is a regional party formed by the scion of the northeastern state's former royal family and threatens to be a powerful contender.
While the BJP has fielded candidates in 55 seats, its ally IPFT has six people in the fray. However, despite the alliance, both have fielded candidates in the Ampinagar constituency in the Gomati district.
Facing the elections with Congress, the Left is contesting on 47 and Congress 13, respectively. Of the total 47 seats, the CPM will contest 43 seats while the Forward Bloc, Communist Party of India ( CPI) and Revolutionary Socialist Party ( RSP) will contest one seat each.
Voting will be held at 3,337 polling stations, out of which 1,100 were identified as sensitive and 28 as critical. Tight security is in place with over 31,000 polling personnel and 25,000 security personnel of central forces being deployed to ensure the conduct of free, fair and peaceful elections.
Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gitte Kirankumar Dinakarrao told PTI that no untoward incident or EVM technical snag was reported from any part of the state during the first 30 minutes.
He also urged electors to come out and exercise their democratic rights, adding that necessary steps have been made for their safety. "Special initiatives have been taken for physically handicapped and elderly voters so that they don't face any inconvenience at the booths," Dinakarrao said.
Sealed borders
To ensure safety, prohibitory order has already been imposed across the state and it will remain in force till 6 am on February 17, a senior police officer said. The international and inter-state boundaries have also been sealed to prevent trouble mongers from entering the state.
Nadda urges voters
BJP chief J P Nadda took to Twitter to urge all voters to take part in the "festival of democracy and show up to vote for Tripura Assembly elections." "Each vote will count towards continuing the journey of good governance, and development and prove to be decisive for a prosperous, corruption-free Tripura," he added.
