Chhattisgarh Assembly Elections 2023: First phase sees 71% voter turnout amid Naxalite violence

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Chhattisgarh Assembly Elections 2023: The states of Chhattisgarh witnessed a provisional voter turnout of around 71 per cent in the first phase of Chhattisgarh assembly elections for 20 constituencies on Tuesday. Notably, the voting was held in separate time slots, amid Naxalite violence and the call for boycott. Voting for 10 constituencies in Chhattisgarh was held from 7 am to 3 pm in 10 seats and from 8 am to 5 pm in the rest 10 segments under a thick security blanket of police and paramilitary personnel in the Naxalite-hit Bastar division.

The polling for the remaining 70 assembly segments will be held in the second phase on November 17 and votes will be counted on December 3. In the previous assembly polls, a voter turnout of 76.47 per cent was recorded on 18 seats in the first phase. This time, two more constituencies were included in the first phase.

Out of the total 20 constituencies that voted on Tuesday, 17 were won by the Congress and two by the BJP in the 2018 assembly polls. Last time, the Congress had won 68 out of the total 90 seats in the state decimating the saffron party, which was in power that time, to 15. Incidents of violence were reported from Sukma, Narayanpur, Bijapur and Kanker districts.

Four security personnel were injured in an encounter with Naxalites in the Chintagufa police station area of Sukma district while a CRPF commando sustained injuries in an IED blast near Tondamarka camp in the same district during separate area domination operations to ensure security during the polls, police said. Exchanges of fire also took place between Naxalites and security personnel --one each in Narayanpur, Bijapur and Kanker districts. However, no harm was reported to security personnel in those