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Patna: A large number of VVPAT slips were discovered on the roadside after Phase 1 of the Bihar Assembly election in Samastipur on Saturday. After the matter
surfaced, election officials responded swiftly, suspending an Assistant Returning Officer and registering a case against him, according to an official statement. The VVPAT slips were found scattered on the roadside near a college in the Sarairanjan assembly segment of the district.
What Poll Officials Said After VVPAT Slips Were Discovered on Road
The Election Commission swung into action after a purported video of it went viral on social media.
The statement issued by the Chief Electoral Officer's office said the district magistrate has been directed to visit the spot and inquire into the matter.
"As these are VVPAT slips of a mock poll, the integrity of the polling process remains uncompromised. The contesting candidates have also been informed by the DM. However, the ARO is being suspended for negligence and an FIR is being registered against him," it said.
An investigation has also been started, it added.
The first phase of the assembly polls in 121 seats took place on November 6.
Bihar Assembly elections are being held in two phases. Voting in the first phase on 121 seats has already concluded on November 6, while polling in remaining 122 seats is set for November 11. The results will be declared on November 14.
Bihar Sees Highest Ever Voter Turnout in Phase 1
Bihar, in the first phase of polling on November 6, witnessed something unprecedented since 1951, a record breaking voter turnout that surpassed all figures from the past seven decades.
In the highest ever voter turnout in Bihar, nearly 65 per cent of 3.75 crore electors exercised their franchise on Thursday across 121 constituencies.
In a statement, the Election Commission said the first phase of the assembly elections concluded peacefully "in
a festive mood with the highest-ever voter turnout of 64.66 per cent in the history of Bihar".
The NDA, which has been in power in the state for 20 years, except for a few brief interruptions, is banking on its image of "sushasan" (good governance) in contrast to the alleged "jungle raj" of the RJD-Congress combine, while the opposition bloc relies on anti-incumbency and the unprecedented "jobs-for-every-home" promise of its CM candidate, Tejashwi Yadav, to outperform the ruling alliance.
The polls for the 243-member assembly are being closely watched not only for their local implications but also as an early indicator of the political mood ahead of 2029, and follow the highly controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll by the EC, which came under attack from opposition parties for alleged "rigging" and "manipulation" of voter lists.
With inputs from PTI
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