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68 pc polling in Arunachal bypoll

By Correspondent

ITANAGAR, Dec 21 - About 68 per cent voter turnout was recorded in today�s bye-elections to Pakke-Kessang and Likabali Assembly constituencies in Arunachal Pradesh, according to State Joint Chief Electoral Officer D J Bhattacharjee.

Pakke-Kessang constituency in East Kameng district has recorded 86 per cent polling, while Likabali (where voters from Kangku Circle had given a poll boycott call), recorded just 51 per cent polling.

Bhattacharjee, however, added that the polling percentage is likely to go up as the final figures are yet to be tallied.

The Joint CEO also informed that re-polling has been ordered at two polling booths under Likabali constituency at Siberite and Dibe where EVMs malfunctioned. Re-polling will be held on December 23. He added, the polling was by and large peaceful.

Meanwhile, informed sources told this correspondent that seven out of nine polling stations under Kangku Circle in Likabali constituency have recorded zero polling as the �agitating� voters did not turn up for casting their votes.

Nyadaar Loya, president of Galo People�s Federation, which is spearheading the villagers� movement tagged �no road, no vote�, informed that voters from seven polling stations, namely, Kamcham, Ngopi, Borajan, Uli, Kangku, Torajan and Balisori abstained from casting votes in today�s bye-poll to Likabali Assembly seat. He added, there is no information on two other polling booths � Hemi and Durpai.

Loya said that voters from 26 villages under Kangku Circle had decided to boycott the bye-polls in protest against State Government�s alleged apathy towards providing good road connectivity to the foothill areas under Kangku Circle of the district bordering Assam.

He alleged that in the name of road construction, the successive Governments and elected representatives had always used the 65-km-long road as their election agenda and never repaired it even after coming to power since last 28 years. �The successive MLAs always use the road as election agenda. They make the road in top list of their poll manifesto but never construct it after coming to power,� Loya rued.

PTI adds: Former Deputy Chief Minister Kameng Dolo of Congress has locked horns with BJP nominee B R Waghe in Pakke-Kessang. The Likabali constituency witnessed a multi-cornered contest with four candidates in the fray � Kardo Nyigyor (BJP), Modam Dini (Cong), Gumke Riba (Peoples� Party of Arunachal) and Independent candidate Sengo Taipodia.

The Pakke-Kessang seat fell vacant after the Gauhati High Court declared the election of Kameng Dolo in March 2014 �null and void� in response to an election petition filed by BJP nominee and former Minister Atum Welly. The bypoll in Likabali seat was necessitated following the death of Health and Family Welfare Minister Jomde Kena on September 4 at a hospital in Guwahati.

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