Tripura elections 2023: 14 per cent voter turnout recorded till 9 am

Tripura recorded a voter turnout of 14 per cent till 9 am on Thursday with the polling process largely being peaceful in the first two hours said Chief Electoral Officer CEO Gitte Kirankumar DinakarraoThe exercise began at 7 am and will continue till 4 pmThe CEO also noted that enthusiasm was palpable among the voters especially womenThis indicates polls are being held in a free and fair manner he saidAmong the early voters was Chief Minister Manik Saha who is contesting the polls from Town Bardowali constituencyHe exuded confidence that the BJP will secure an absolute majority in the Assembly electionsAlso Read Tripura elections 2023 PM Narendra Modi appeals to vote in record numbersI am 100 per cent confident that the BJP will secure absolute majority in the elections The party may get more seats than it did the last timeiquest he told reporters on his way to a polling booth at Maharani Tulsibati Girls SchoolThe northeastern state where top leaders had stepped up their electoral spadework over the past few days is set to witness a triangular fight this time with the BJPIPFT coalition seeking to retain supremacy the LeftCongress combine looking to wrest power and regional outfit Tipra Motha making its debut at the hustings after its stunning performance in the autonomous council pollsThe BJPIPFT alliance which had won 18 of 20 seats in the tribal areas last elections however is facing a tough challenge this time from the Tipra Motha headed by erstwhile royal scion Pradyot Manikya Debbarma given that the regional outfit had made a big splash in Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council TTAADC polls two years ago bagging 18 of the 30 seatsAltogether 2813 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise during the day in 3337 polling stations of the northeastern state to determine the fate of 259 candidates the CEO saidOf the 3337 polling stations 1100 booths have been identified as sensitive and 28 as critical As many as 97 booths are being managed by the women polling personnelThe international and interstate boundaries have been sealed to keep troublemakers at bay during the voting process he saidAs part of precautionary measures prohibitory orders have been imposed across the state till 6 am on February 17 the CEO statedAs many as 31000 polling personnel and 25000 security personnel of central forces will be on guard to ensure the election is conducted in a free fair and peaceful manner Besides 31000 officials of the state armed police and the state police will be deployed at various places to maintain law and order he explainedDinakarrao also said that an air ambulance has been stationed at Agartala Airport for emergenciesUrging electors to come out and exercise their democratic rights the CEO said necessary steps have been made for their safetySpecial initiatives have been taken for physically challenged and old voters so that they dont face any inconvenience at the booths he saidThe BJP is contesting 55 assembly seats and its ally IPFT has fielded candidates in six constituencies The two parties will be having a friendly fight in one seatThe Left Front is contesting 47 seats and the Congress 13 constituenciesThe TMC has fielded nominees in 28 constituencies Apart from that there are 58 independent aspirants in the frayVotes will be counted on March 2This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever