Preparations to hold free, fair polls in Mizoram satisfactory: CEC Rawat

AIZAWL, Oct 17 (IANS): Preparations to hold free and fair elections to the Mizoram state Assembly are satisfactory, Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat said here on Wednesday.

"Mizoram has always had an excellent record of holding free and fair elections. In the upcoming Assembly election, the state would once again establish its record of free and fair polls," Rawat told reporters before leaving for New Delhi after a two-day visit to the mountainous state.

Mizoram goes to the polls on November 28 to constitute the 40-member Assembly. In the outgoing Assembly, the Congress has 34 members.

Rawat, who was accompanied by Election Commissioners Sunil Arora and Ashok Lavasa, complimented the District Magistrates, who are also the District Electoral Officers, for the poll preparations. "Their meticulous preparations would help in conducting a smooth and fair election."

"Concerns and views expressed by political parties, civil societies and officials over the Reang tribal voters sheltered in six Tripura relief camps, reliability of Electronic Voting Machines, and ceiling limits on election expenditure were heard," he said.

These concerns would be addressed appropriately, Rawat added.

The single-phase election will be held on November 28. The statutory notification would be issued on November 2 and the last date for filing nominations is November 9.

As many as 768,181 people out of a total population of 10,91,014 are eligible to cast their votes.

Women once again outnumber men in Mizoram's electoral rolls. Of the total electorate, 393,685 are women and 374,496 men.