After an intense round of campaigning, northeastern states of Meghalaya and Nagaland are set to vote in single-phased assembly elections on Monday.
The polling will be held across 118 constituencies– 59 each in both Nagaland and Meghalaya– and votes will be counted on March 2.
It’s a fight between the National People’s Party (NPP), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC) in Meghalaya.
In Nagaland, the saffron party will contest in alliance with the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), its old alliance partner in the 2018 assembly polls.
For voting, elaborate arrangements have been made. Polling personnel along with poll materials have been dispatched to voting booths.
Additional paramilitary forces have been deployed across the states. Security has also been beefed up on the Indo-Myanmar border.
Inter-state borders with Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh have been sealed to avoid any untoward incidents.
Meghalaya
➡️In Meghalaya, a total of 369 candidates, including 36 women, are in the fray for 59 Assembly constituencies in the state.
➡️Polling will be held at 3,419 polling stations across 59 assembly constituencies.
➡️Of the 60 Assembly constituencies in Meghalaya, 36 fall in Khasi, Jaintia Hills while 24 are in Garo Hills region.
➡️There are 81,000 first time voters in the state. The ruling National People’s Party (NPP) is seeking to return to power.
➡️The NPP, which has been leading the ruling alliance for the last five years, is fighting alone against former ally BJP, opposition TMC, and other regional parties such as the United Democratic Party and People’s Democratic Front.
➡️In 2018 polls, NPP bagged 19 seats, while Congress got 21 seats. The Bharitiya Janata Party (BJP) managed to get two seats. The United Democratic Party (UDP) got 6 seats.
➡️Of the total electorate of 13,17,632, the number of female voters in this election is 6,56,143 or 49.8 per cent. There are four women nominees in the electoral fray out of total 183 candidates.
➡️Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma is contesting from South Tura constituency while the BJP fielded Bernard N Marak against the NPP chief.
➡️The four women candidates are Hekhani Jakhalu of NDPP in Dimapur-III seat, Rosy Thompson of Congress in Tening seat, Salhoutuonuo of NDPP in Western Angami seat and Kahuli Sema of BJP in Atoizu seat.
➡️Some of the key issues of infrastructure development in remote and hilly regimes remains one of the core issues this year. There has also been allegations of corruption are also haunting the NPP government.
➡️As many as 640 polling booths have been categorised as ‘vulnerable’ and 323 as ‘critical’.
➡️The highest of 10 women nominees have been put up by the Congress.
➡️The Voice of the People’s Party is contesting in 18 assembly constituencies in the Khasi Jaintia Hills region.
Nagaland
➡️The BJP and DPP is looking to retain power in Nagaland.
➡️The BJP and NDPP are contesting the elections on a 20:40 seat-sharing arrangement. Naga People’s Front (NPF) and Congress are contesting in 22 and 23 seats respectively.
➡️The National People’s Party (NPP) and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have fielded 12 candidates each.
➡️Among the key constituencies are Northen Angami, which will determine the poll fate of NDPP candidate and Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphui Rio.
➡️The Janajati Dharma-Sanskriti Sauraksha Mancha’s (JDSSM) recently put forward a demand to delist from the Scheduled Tribes those who have converted to other faiths. This has become an election issue in the state.
➡️BJP and NDPP have maintained silence on the issue.
➡️Congress has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “cheating” the people of Nagaland. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that the government has failed to resolve the Naga political issue.
➡️”Nine districts and 16 police station in four districts of Nagaland were being declared as ‘disturbed areas’ after a review of the law and order situation in the state,” the Home Ministry said.
➡️A total of 19 nominees are contesting as independents.
➡️Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton is seeking re-election for the third consecutive time from the Tyui seat, where he is pitted against Nagaland JD(U) president Senchumo Lotha and two other opponents.
➡️The NPF, which won 26 seats in the last assembly polls, has fielded candidates in 22 seats, but one of them withdrew, leaving 21 in the fray.
➡️The Congress has asserted it would not align with the BJP to form the next government, but it could join any like-minded secular front.
With agency inputs
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