The Hindu : Other States / Madhya Pradesh News : Congress seeks re-poll in Nohata

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Friday, Oct 15, 2004

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Congress seeks re-poll in Nohata

By Our Staff Correspondent

BHOPAL, OCT. 14. The Congress party today asked the Election Commission to order a re-poll for the entire Nohata Assembly constituency alleging that there had been massive rigging and misuse of Government machinery during polling for the Nohata by-election yesterday.

Addressing newsmen at the State Congress headquarters here, the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary and spokesman, Manak Agrawal, said that at least 80 booths in the Nohata constituency were captured yesterday by the Bajrang Dal, Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party activists led by over a dozen State Ministers and more than four dozen MLAs.

He went on to allege that over 500 vehicles had been provided to "goonda elements" by the BJP to capture the polling booths in Nohata.

He said that the Congress candidate, Ratnesh Solomon and three independent candidates have lodged their complaints with the Election Commission as well as the district returning officer. Mr. Solomon also sat on a protest strike last night to seek a re-poll.

Mr. Agrawal told newspersons that Government machinery was also misused in yesterday's polling for the Balaghat by-election. However polling in that constituency was by and large peaceful, he added.

He said that the BJP is utterly frustrated as the voters in Nohata were completely disenchanted with the ruling party.

It is due to this reason that they had resorted to large-scale rigging and even went to the extent of conspiring and registering a false case against the MPCC president, Subhash Yadav and State Youth Congress president, Meenakshi Natrajan. He said that the district administration, acting at the behest of those in the ruling BJP, had registered a criminal case against the Congress leaders who were not even remotely connected with a violent incident at Tendu Kheda in Nohata constituency during yesterday's polling.

Another State Congress general secretary, Manohar Bairagi, who was also present at the Press conference, said that the BJP workers did not allow the Union Minister, Kamal Nath's helicopter to land when he went to campaign for the Congress candidate in Balaghat.

Taking a dig at the ruling party, he said that the extent to which the BJP leaders are demoralised can be gauged from the fact that the former Chief Minister, Uma Bharti, had chosen to stay away from an election rally in Balaghat even after it was announced that she has taken off and would soon be landing to address the rally.

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Congress seeks re-poll in Nohata