CANACONA, OCT 31
Tension flared-up in at least two polling booths in Canacona, but the timely intervention of polling officers in one of them and police in the other, helped in bringing the situation under control, thereby ensuring a free and fair poll at the civic polls.
In one incident, there were heated arguments between a candidate and a voter of the concerned ward.
According to sources, the matter came to such a boiling hot that attempts were reportedly made for physical assault on the candidate concerned. The situation was finally diffused with the intervention of some policemen and well-wishers.
In the second incident, two candidates of a ward were prominently seen inside a polling booth and were reportedly directly passing instructions to voters to vote for them reportedly again in full view of polling officers and other related officials manning the booth.
The things came to such a boiling hot that both the candidates then reportedly targeted each other amid alleging each others for passing instructions to voters.
The concerned polling officer reportedly brought the matter to the notice of the polling observer and returning officer.
Sources told Herald that both, Observer Y B Tawade and Returning Officer Shiv Kumar, rushed to the booth and averted the matter from getting bad to worst.
Interestingly, the incident found no mention, when presspersons sought to known about any incident having taken place during the polls on Sunday at the ballot boxes collection center.
Incidentally, few rival candidates coming face-to-face in few booths were seen reportedly passing threatening stares at each other, but in most cases things were not flared-up beyond that point.
Intimidation of voters were also reported in some of the booths, but police confirmed that no such incidents are reported to them or came to police notice from any of the 10 polling booths of CMC.
