Voter turnout low at 43.67%, courtesy inclement weather : The Tribune India

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Voter turnout low at 43.67%, courtesy inclement weather

Polling goes on in candle light due to power cut during the MC byelections in Ward No. 10 at Government High School, Sector 41, Chandigarh, on Sunday. Tribune Photo: Pradeep Tewari

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 1

Rain played spoilsport in the byelections of Ward No. 10 as only 43.67 per cent votes were polled today, which is 16.33 per cent less as compared to the last MC elections in 2011. In the last MC elections, Ward No. 10 comprising Sectors 41 and 42, including Attawa, Badheri and Buterla villages, 60 per cent voters had exercised their voting right. Counting of votes will be held on March 3.

In this elections,there was direct contest between Congress candidate Bhupinder Singh Badheri and SAD-BJP alliance nominee Hardeep Singh Buterla in the ward.Many voters were even not aware that it was the polling day today. Party workers contacted the voters at the last minute and found that many of them were out of town. Since it was a holiday in Haryana on Friday, employees of the Haryana Government who were residing in Sectors 41 and 42, had gone to their villages during the weekend This also affected the polling percentage.
In the afternoon, there was power cut due to rain in the area, this also affected voting in many polling booths. In Sector 41, election officials were working under candlelight, and mobile phone lights.

In Buterla, Badheri and Attawa villages, there was more than 60 per cent polling in almost all the polling booths, whereas polling percentage was low in Sectors 41 and 42. In Sector 41, there was around 40 per cent voting whereas it was around 20 per cent in Sector 42.
Minor scuffle between Congress and BJP workers were also reported in Sectors 41, Buterla and Badheri village. Later, senior party leaders intervened and the matter was settled.There was a total of 24,176 voters in the ward and the polling was held at 22 polling stations.There were 12,954 male voters and 11,222 female voters in the ward.
BJP city unit president Sanjay Tandon said the party was confident of winning and would win the seat with a huge margin. Similarly, Congress city unit president Pardeep Chhabra said despite rain, people had voted for the Congress and the party would win the bypoll.