Polling underway in third phase of Odisha panchayat elections

Polling in the third phase of Odisha panchayat elections is underway on Sunday amid tight security and strict adherence to COVID-19 norms, the State Election Commission said.

Polling, which began at 7 AM and will continue till 1 PM, is underway in 18,495 booths in 29 districts. As many as 679 candidates are in the fray for 171 Zilla Parishad seats in 1,382 gram panchayats.

Of the 18,495 booths, 2,773 have been identified as sensitive. Over 56.53 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise.

The remaining two phases of polling will be held on February 22 and 24, while counting will be held between February 26 and 28.

The SEC has made elaborate security arrangements for the third phase of the election. More than 7,200 police personnel and 1,625 mobile patrolling teams besides district police officers have been deployed for smooth polling. Voters were seen wearing masks and maintaining social distancing to prevent the spread of the infection.

The SEC has also announced repolling in 45 booths where voting was affected during the previous two phases. The repolling will be held from 9 AM to 3 PM on February 23, a statement said.

Repolling will be held in 25 booths where voting could not be held in the first phase on February 16, and in another 20 booths where voting was disturbed in the second phase on February 18 due to violence and other reasons, it said.

The police has so far arrested 62 people in connection with poll violence in the first two phases. Twenty-eight people were arrested in Jajpur district and 23 in Puri.