Government confident of holding polls in violence-hit Manipur on time

NEW DELHI: Amid continuing incidents of violence in ethnic-strife-hit Manipur, govt sources Thursday expressed confidence that the assembly polls in the state will be held on schedule. The term of the Manipur assembly ends on March 13 next year, and the state is due to go to the polls alongside Goa, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. However, a long phase of ethnic violence, which has subsided but continues to persist sporadically, has left political circles wondering if the Manipur polls will be held on time.

"It will be held on time," a source said when asked. EC, which has been making preparations, put Manipur's electorate at 19.94 lakh in its draft rolls, signalling an expansion of the voter base by nearly 2% before assembly elections expected by March. The draft rolls, prepared after a special summary revision (SSR), added 33,737 electors to the rolls published following Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Sept. The 60 assembly constituencies of the state registered a rise in voter numbers, with women outnumbering men by 55,437. Saikot recorded the highest gain of more than 2,600 electors. The window for filing claims and objections will remain open until Dec 11. The final rolls will be published on Jan 4.