Tag: Jharkhand-Assembly-Election-2019

Jharkhand Assembly Election 2019: 1 dead, 2 injured in police firing at polling booth.

Source – hindustantimes.com

A villager was killed and two others were injured after police opened fire to control a mob pelting stones on security forces at a polling booth in Jharkhand’s Sisai assembly segment on Saturday.

Eight others, including the officer-in-charge of Sisai police station, two constables and a journalist, were also injured in the stone-pelting incident.

The incident took place at booth number 36 in Badhni village under Gumla district.

“Villagers tried to snatch arms from Rapid Protection Force (RPF) deployed at the polling booth. In order to control the mob, police had to open fire in which one person died and two others received bullet injuries on thigh and shoulder. They are reportedly out of danger and have been shifted to Ranchi hospital,” Jharkhand’s chief electoral officer Vinay Choubey said.

“Voting has been stopped at the said booth. There is all probability that a re-polling on this booth will be announced,” Choubey added.

According to police, supporters of two different political parties entered into a brawl at the booth. Police personnel deployed there interfered but they picked up a fight with the forces as well.

Villagers started snatching arms from police and pelted stones on them compelling the forces to launch a crackdown in self-defence, officials said.

The villager who died was identified as Gilani Ansari and those who received bullet injuries in the police firing as Asfaq Ansari and Khoofa Ansari.

Officer-in-charge of Sisai police station Vishnu Dev Choudhary, police constables Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul, police driver Sitaram Singh, journalist Sitaram Singh and three villagers were injured in the stone-pelting.

All the injured were rushed to Gumla Sadar Hospital for treatment.

Additional forces have been rushed to the spot. Gumla’s superintendent of police AK Jha and other senior officials of district administration were camping in the village.

Voting for the second phase of Jharkhand Assembly Election 2019 in 20 assembly constituencies began at 7am on Saturday.

In Sisai, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) candidate and assembly Speaker Dinesh Oraon is in a direct fight with JMM’s nominee Jigga Susaran Horo.

Jharkhand Assembly Election 2019: First phase of polling today, IAF chopper drops polling personnel in Chhattisgarh.

Source – hindustantimes.com

An Indian Air Force (IAF) chopper “mistakenly” dropped a team of polling personnel from Jharkhand on duty for the first phase of assembly elections on November 30 in the neighbouring state Chhattisgarh on Thursday.

Members of eight polling parties had taken off from a helipad at the district headquarters in Latehar for Chatakapur in Mahuadand in Jharkhand’s Latehar district but they found themselves dropped at Sattipara field in Pratappur Bhainsamunda area of Surajpur district in Chhattisgarh.

The Latehar district administration had despatched 18 members of nine polling parties for Chatakpur cluster centre in Manika assembly constituency, which is among the 13 assembly constituencies in Latehar, Palamu, Garhwa, Chatra, Lohardaga and Gumla districts where voting is scheduled to take place on November 30.

The polling personnel included nine presiding officers and nine first polling officers for nine polling stations in the area. Manika constituency had a total of 321 polling stations.

Upon realising about the wrong landing, the polling personnel informed the Latehar deputy commissioner (DC) and district election officer (DEO) Zeeshan Qmar, who alerted his Chhattisgarh counterpart Dipak Soni.

Soon, a team of officials from Chhattisgarh reached the site of landing and provided security cover to the 18-member polling party. Later, another IAF helicopter was sent from Latehar in Jharkhand to lift the stranded polling personnel from Chhattisgarh and drop them at their original destination in Jharkhand.

The Latehar DC later said, “The chopper lost its way and dropped the polling personnel in adjoining Chhattisgarh. The pilot had picked the details of a wrong location. They are all safe and have been brought back to Chatakpur.”

Raees Ahmad, one of the polling personnel, said, “The pilot of the IAF chopper asked us to alight in a field saying the engine had developed some technical snag. We obeyed and got down. Before we could understand something, the chopper left us and flew back.”

“On realising where we are, we panicked at first but soon villagers reached there and assured us of safety,” said Krishna Ram, another member of polling party.

The district administration had despatched a total of 125 polling parties to cluster centres by three IAF choppers two days ahead of the election.

A total of 83 parties were air dropped in Mahuadand block, 28 in Garu and another 14 in Barwadih block of the Manika assembly constituency.