Agartala, May 3: The eighth election to the autonomous district council (ADC) ended peacefully in the state today.
The daylong polling took place all over the ADC areas, which comprise 68.10 per cent of the state's total territory. The secretary to the state election commission, Tamal Mazumder, said according to feedback received from different ADC areas, more than 70 per cent of the 7,58,554-strong electorate had voted through EVMs in 1,070 polling booths till 3pm.
"Our estimate is that the final polling percentage is likely to cross 83.62 per cent recorded in 2010 polls. But we are awaiting feedback from the interior areas which may take some time," said Mazumder.
Polling began at 7am with long queues of traditionally clad tribal men and women waiting for their turn to vote. Within two hours, 25 per cent voting had been recorded while by 1pm, 58 per cent voters had cast their votes. By 3 in the afternoon, more than 70 per cent people had voted across the ADC areas.
Voters in Sarat Chowdhurypara Senior Basic School, under Simna-Tamakari ADC constituency were allowed to vote without producing photo identity cards.
Indigenous Peoples' Front of Tripura (IPFT) president Narendra Debbarma alleged that CPM cadres had jammed the booth and pressed buttons in the EVMs at Jirania-Khola Higher Secondary School in Mandai Pulinpur constituency.
An EVM broke down at a polling booth in Hrishyamukh area under Belonia subdivision. Presiding officer Rajiv Halder did not allow media-persons to enter the booth and take photographs.
Tamal Mazumder and ADC executive member Radhacharan Debbarma rubbished the allegations made by IPFT and other Opposition parties.
A voter, Sudhangshu Shukla Das, 47, in Santipur polling booth under Pecharthal ADC constituency of North Tripura, fainted while awaiting his turn to vote.
He was taken to Pecharthal primary health centre where he was declared dead as he had suffered a massive cardiac arrest.
Altogether 129 tribal voters in remote Manithangpara village under Killa-Bagma ADC constituency in Gomati district boycotted the polls in protest against alleged lack of development. Similarly, 162 voters in Maharanipur-Teliamura ADC constituency boycotted the polls because of "deprivation and backwardness" in Hrangkhawalpara polling booth.
The secretary of the state election commission said Thalaicherra Senior Basic School in Damcherra ADC constituency under North Tripura district registered only 48 voters - the lowest in any polling booth - while Rajapur polling booth in Kathalia-Mirza ADC constituency in Sipahijala district had registered the highest number of voters at 5,955.
