IMPHAL: The Election Commission on Thursday ordered re-polling in 12 polling stations under five Assembly constituencies on Saturday (March 5), Manipur Chief Electoral Officer Rajesh Agrawal said.
The CEO said that the proposal for re-poll in 12 polling stations in two districts -- Imphal East and Churachandpur -- was recommended based on the facts and information received from the respective returning officers.
One of the main reasons for consideration of re-polling was that miscreants damaged Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) during and after the first phase of polling on February 28, he said.
Agrawal said that all electors of these polling stations are requested to come out in big numbers to exercise their franchise and the inconvenience caused due the incidents on February 28 is regretted.
The CEO said that in the first phase of election in 38 Assembly segments on February 28, 88.63 per cent of the total of 12,09,439 voters exercised their right to franchise.
He said that the voter turnout of men was 87.29 per cent and that of women was 89.96 per cent.
"Not only females outnumber the male electors in the gender ratio, female electors have displayed more enthusiasm in the voter turnout as well in the first phase of balloting," the official said.
Women are nearly 52 per cent of the total of 20,48,169 electorate eligible to cast their votes in the two-phased elections to the 60-seat Manipur Assembly.
Like all previous elections, 10,57,336 women voters outnumbered the male electorate of 9,90,627 in the current 12th Manipur Assembly elections.
The second phase of elections in the remaining 22 Assembly constituencies will be held on Saturday and the counting of votes would be done on March 10. (IANS)
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