Bhubaneswar: The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the opposition BJP and the Congress Thursday held each other responsible for the violence witnessed during the first phase of polling in the three-tier panchayat elections in Odisha on the previous day.
Snatching of ballot boxes, booth capturing and ransacking of polling stations were reported from various parts of the state. Around 50 people were injured in the violence.
State Election Commissioner A P Padhi convened an urgent meeting on the violence with Chief Secretary SC Mohapatra and Director General of Police (DGP) S K Bansal.
After the meeting, Bansal said such incidents in the remaining four phases of polling on February 18, 20, 22 and 24 will be firmly dealt with.
Voting was disrupted in as many as 25 polling stations on Wednesday prompting the SEC to direct the police to further tighten measures to ensure free and fair elections in the state.
In one place, the miscreants had also attacked the media persons and damaged their equipment.
Those involved in the violence are being arrested, the DGP said.
In separate press conferences, the BJD, BJP and the Congress hurled accusations against each other for Wednesday’s violence during the polling.
State BJP president Samir Mohanty blamed Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who is also in charge of the home department, for the violent incidents.
“The chief minister has failed in his assurance of ensuring free and fair elections, The CM must own up to the violence unleashed by his party,” Mohanty said.
He claimed that BJD activists had direct involvement in the violence that took place in areas such as Pipili, Dharmasala, Jajpur, Brahmagiri, Angul, Hindol, Bhadrak and Kanas.
BJD MP and party spokesperson Sasmit Patra, on the other hand, blamed the saffron party for the incidents.
“The BJP has indulged in violence after realising that the party is going to face a debacle in the panchayat polls,” he said.
Senior Congress leader and MLA Suresh Routray blamed both the BJD and BJP for the violence.
A total of 77.2 per cent of the 67.51 lakh voters have exercised their franchise in the first phase of polling.
The election was held for 200 Zilla Parishad seats at 22,379 booths in 1,669 panchayats in 71 blocks of the state.
PTI