The Hindu : National / Elections 2004 : After two boycotts, Ukhrul is raring to vote

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Wednesday, Apr 07, 2004

National

National - Elections 2004

After two boycotts, Ukhrul is raring to vote

A BJP worker at the party's Ukhrul district committee office.

UKHRUL, MANIPUR

M.K.S. Hungam, secretary, and fellow villagers of Hundung in Ukhrul district — home to the NSCN (IM) general secretary, Thuingaleng Muivah, and other top rung leaders of the militant outfit — bordering Myanmar are eagerly awaiting the April 20 election to the Outer Manipur Lok Sabha constituency. They did not get an opportunity to vote in the 1998 and 1999 Lok Sabha elections owing to the boycott called by the NSCN (I-M).

The militant outfit has not given a boycott call this time, and the mood in Ukhrul district, dominated by the Tangkhuls, a Naga tribe, is upbeat.

In 1999, only 1,000 votes were cast in a few pockets dominated by the Kuki tribe against a total of 29,564 votes in the Ukhrul assembly segment. In the Phungar and Chingai Assembly segments, polling was almost nil.

"I did not vote in the last two elections because the NSCN (I-M) had given a boycott call. But I am happy that I will be able to cast my vote as there is no boycott this time," Mr. Hungum told The Hindu. Naoshimla Chithung, a housewife, said polling this time in a "free atmosphere" would be heavy. There are about 84,000 voters in the district with a population of 1,20,000.

Encouraged by the atmosphere, the Bharatiya Janata Party has already constituted a central campaign committee for the district and also at the polling booth level. The party candidate, D. Loli Adanee, is scheduled to kick off his poll campaign on April 8 at a meeting of presidents of polling booth committees besides the district campaign committee.

The BJP election office in Ukhrul town is decorated with banners and posters of the Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and the Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani. The party is planning to rope in Bollywood stars, Vinod Khanna and Shatrughan Sinha, for the campaigning. "We have already requested State BJP leaders to ensure that these two stars are brought here for campaigning. We are awaiting confirmation," said Neachana Raleng, general secretary of the BJP's Ukhrul unit.

Meanwhile, officials are busy checking the electronic voting machines in the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Suheil Akhtar, who assumed charge on March 15. Mr. Akhtar is hopeful of a heavy turnout as the situation in the district is peaceful. Of the 133 polling stations in the district, 16 had been identified as hypersensitive and 24 sensitive, he said.

The troops of the Assam Rifles can be seen patrolling vulnerable stretches of the 85-km Imphal-Ukhrul hilly road as the security forces have not left anything to chance.

The sitting MP, Holkhomang Haokip, of the Nationalist Congress Party, however, is yet to kick off his campaign although his posters can be seen in the Kuki-dominated areas. The Manipur People's Party candidate and former MP, Kim Gangte, began her campaign with an interaction with journalists but is yet to kick off campaign in Ukhrul district. Altogether seven candidates have filed their nominations for outer Manipur constituency.

In 1999, Mr. Haokip defeated his nearest Congress rival, R.K.Theko, by a margin of 28809 votes. Although the Naga-inhabited areas of the Outer Manipur Lok Sabha constituency recorded a very poor turnout, the poll percentage was about 63 per cent in the 1999 elections.

Sushanta Talukdar

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