TINSUKIA, Feb 3 � Campaigning by candidates to woo voters for the civic polls in the district, slated for February 9, picked up today on the last date of withdrawal of nominations. Eight candidates have withdrawn their nomination papers in the district.
As many as 230 candidates are in the fray for a total of 53 seats in six civic bodies, including the Tinsukia Municipal Board and five Town Committees namely, Makum, Doomdooma, Chapakhowa (Sadiya), Digboi and Margherita.
In Tinsukia, there are 15 wards; in Makum, there are eight wards; in Doomdooma 10; in Chapakhowa four; in Digboi eight, and in Margherita, there are eight wards. The Indian National Congress (INC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have fielded candidates in all the wards. The Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) has fielded candidates in 34 wards, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has put up candidates in three wards, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has candidates in six wards and the All India United Democratic Front (AIDUF) has fielded candidates in four wards. In addition to the party candidates, there are 77 Independent candidates in the fray for the 53 seats in the district.
Meanwhile, to apprise the political parties and candidates of the Tinsukia, Makum and Doomdooma civic bodies of the Code of Conduct, a meeting was convened by the Tinsukia district administration at the conference hall of the Deputy Commissioner�s office here today. The meeting was addressed by the Election Officer, Sushanta Dutta and Additional Deputy Commissioners Swapna Dutta Bhuyan and Diganta Saikia.
