Poll rerun in 81 stations, EC say on Chapra today

The Election Commission which is yet to take a decision on whether to go for a repoll or countermand the Chapra Lok Sabha polls, on Thursday...

The Election Commission which is yet to take a decision on whether to go for a repoll or countermand the Chapra Lok Sabha polls, on Thursday ordered repolling in 81 polling stations in five of the states that went to polls in the third phase of polling.

In Rajasthan repolling will be held in 38 polling stations, besides 29 polling stations in Uttar Pradesh, 11 in Madhya Pradesh, two in Arunachal Pradesh and one in Nagaland. A decision on the troubled constituencies in Bihar that went to polls on May 5, will be taken on Friday. The decision on repolling in Jammu and Kashmir has been kept on hold, sources in the EC said.

The ‘‘yet-be-to-collated’’ report on Chapra — the high profile constituency in Bihar where RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav is pitted against the BJP’s Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy — is to be submitted to the EC on Friday evening, sources said.

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Asked if the Commission will wait for the elections to be over to take a decision on Chapra, Ananth Kumar, the EC official who was part of the two-member inquiry team sent to Chapra, said: ‘‘No, it (a decision) is going to be taken soon. Very soon.’’

While the fate of the Chapra polling is to be decided, Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Yadav led a delegation to the EC demanding repolling in 199 polling stations in Madhepura and 50 polling stations in Sitamarhi in Bihar. Coming out of the Commission, Sharad Yadav alleged there was massive rigging in polling stations where home-guards were deployed.

He alleged that BDOs of Udakishanganj and Singhehswar Assembly segments of Madhepura were found ‘‘openly helping’’ the ruling RJD in the elections.

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