An infant holds his mother’s identity card at a booth in Tura on Thursday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Shillong, May 22: More than 65 per cent voters cast their ballot today for the byelection to the Tura Lok Sabha seat.

The chief electoral officer, P. Naik, said polling ended peacefully and there was no report of any untoward incident from any of the three Garo Hills districts.

Counting will take place on Sunday.

The Achik National Volunteers Council (ANVC) that has been demanding creation of a separate state, adopted a neutral stand.

The byelection was necessitated by Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Purno A. Sangma’s resignation as an MP after being elected to the Meghalaya Assembly.

His daughter Agatha has been pitted against Congress’s Zenith Sangma, brother of senior party leader Mukul Sangma. Boston Marak and John Leslee Sangma are the two Independents in the fray.

Zenith Sangma, a former minister, had been defeated by Adolf Hitler Marak of the NCP in the last Assembly elections from Rangsakona in the West Garo Hills.

Boston Marak is the son of Purno A. Sangma’s elder brother Hemarson A. Sangma, while John Leslee Sangma is a member of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council.

“Compared to the Assembly elections, the percentage of votes cast in Lok Sabha elections is usually low,” Naik said.

“Campaigning for the byelection was a low key affair and there was not a single complaint against violation of the model code of conduct.”

According to poll officials, the byelection lost attraction as it was held a few months after the Assembly elections. With the Lok Sabha election drawing near today’s byelection held little sheen, they said.