M A I N   N E W S

70 per cent polling in Majitha
Liquor flows; faulty EVMs delay polling
Varinder Walia
Tribune News Service

Majitha, February 19
The atmosphere in a cluster of six villages (known as Tapprian), dominated by migrant labourers, was festive as hordes of voters were served jalebis and liquor by the ruling party since morning. The fingers of ‘doubtful voters” were marked with indelible ink even before they could cast their votes.

The atmosphere of festivity was seen in almost the entire constituency where voters of weaker sections were lured with “cash and kind” even as election observers turned a blind eye to poll violations.

However, barring a few incidents of intimidation, manhandling and attempts of rigging, the polling passed off peacefully in the entire constituency.

In some polling booths, faulty electronic machines delayed the polling, raising serious objections by the opposition party.

Mr Birdevinder Singh, General Secretary, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, alleged that the ruling party made futile efforts to capture booths in some polling stations, including Chawinda Devi and Kathu Nangal.

An official press note put the polling between 70 per cent and 75 per cent. Before noon, the polling was moderate while it was brisk and heavy in the afternoon.

Though the election observers, appointed by the Election Commission of India namely Mr Y.P. Singh, Mr Dipak Jain and Mr Sanjay Gupta were on an intensive tour of the constituency, yet except for Nag Kalan, they failed to initiate any action against the “erring” poll officials.

An official spokesman said all electronic machines used for the voting were safely transported from the polling booths to the counting centres at Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Mall Road, Amritsar, under tight security.

Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister, thanked the voters of Majitha for the peaceful polling. He claimed that the Shiromani Akali Dal candidate, Mr Raj Mohinder Singh Majitha, would register a convincing victory in the election.

A visit to Dayalpur Tapprian, dominated by migrant labourers who have converted the cluster of six villages into “mini-Bihar and UP” revealed that supporters of Raja Narinder Singh, Minister for Public Health, distributed “sports kits, liquor and cash and kind” in the villages.

Mr Darshan Singh Dakala, General secretary, District Congress Committee, and Mr Hardyal Singh, DCC President, alleged that voters were threatened by leaders of the ruling party.

Though the supporters of Raja Narinder Singh, including Harjit Singh, Darshan Singh, Sarpanch Ghamrouda, Taju Khan and Ujjagar Singh, etc, who had come from Nabha, refuted the charges of distribution of liquor, yet one Ved Parkash, a resident of Karnala (Tapprian), was seen distributing the same among voters on behalf of the ruling party.

However, Mr Manpreet Singh Badal, MLA, Gidderbaha, alleged that Congress leaders were distributing cash among voters in Mattewal village.

Interestingly, Mr Darshan Singh Isapur, a former General Secretary, SGPC, and member, Working Committee, Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal, openly went around with the Congress candidate, Mr Savinder Singh, during the polling. He alleged that Mr Balwant Singh, an SGPC member of Dayalpura village, intimidated voters and directed them to vote for the ruling party candidate.

During a visit to a polling booth in Shampur village, Sarpanch Gurbhej Singh, who was the polling agent of the ruling party, was seen taking a voter, Swinder Kaur, and asking her to press the button in front of “scales” (the election symbol of the ruling party). On this, the polling agent of the Congress, Mr Shinda, raised an objection which was overruled by the polling staff.

Chachowali village, which was declared a very sensitive station as many encounters had taken place in the village during militancy, witnessed a brisk and heavy polling.

Electronic voting machines, which are used for the first time in Majitha, were found to be faulty in polling booths at Nag Kalan, Kathu Nangal, Nangal Paanuwan and some other places thereby delaying the polling for some time. At Ajaibwali village, the polling was stopped for about half-an- hour when some “bogus votes” were being cast.

Mr K.K. Kaushak, Presiding Officer at booth number 75 (Kathu Nangal), admitted that there was some snag in the EVM when Mr Savinder Singh Kathu Nangal, Congress candidate, tried to cast his vote. The polling was delayed for a few minutes.

In the morning the polling was sluggish in most of the polling stations. At Marri Kalan village (booth number 55) only 137 votes were polled by 10.30 a.m., while at booth number 56 only 100 out of 796 votes were polled. However, at Nangal Panwan, the polling was delayed for an hour due to some snag in the EVM.

However, at Majitha proper, 448 of the total 804 votes were polled by 3 p.m., while at polling booth number 31, 602 of the total 917 votes were polled by the same time. The EVM at booth number 19 at Nag Kalan was changed due to a fault.

EC seeks minister’s explanation

New Delhi, February 19
Taking serious note of poll eve sops by the ruling Akali Dal, the Election Commission today asked Punjab Minister of State for Jails Ajit Singh Kohar to “clarify his conduct’’ in giving cheques to war widows in the Majitha Assembly constituency during the election campaign period.

The commission has taken note of the report of the minister, who is also Minister for Elections, giving cheques to war widows in the constituency where the model code of conduct was in operation, commission sources said.

“This being totally against the stipulation of the model code of conduct and the spirit of free and fair elections, the minister may kindly be asked to clarify his conduct,” the sources said.

The response of the minister should be sent to the commission by February 22, the commission said . PTI