Peaceful polling in Hydergarh

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERGARH (U.P.), APRIL 7. An estimated 65 to 70 per cent of the electorate voted in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly by-election from the Hydergarh constituency, polling for which was held today .

The Uttaar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Rajnath Singh, is one of the contestents from the constituency .

Polling passed off peacefully with no untoward incident reported from anywhere in the constituency till this evening.There were some complaints by Opposition workers about irregularities in the polling process but these were not substantiated by the authorities.

With the Election Commission taking a strong view of the administration's laxity in ensuring observance of the model code of conduct yesterday, when two police officers were placed under suspension on directives of the Commission,the administration seemed to have overreacted to the situation today.The entire National High way from Lucknow to Hydergarh had been closed for vehicular traffic since this morning,though nearly half of its stretch fell outside the constituency.District roads joining one part of Hydergarh with another also wore a deserted look.

At some places people complained that those moving within their own village on two wheelers were roughed up by the police.The village Pradhan of Gautana on the outskirts of Hydergarh,Mr Ram Karan Singh, was going to his shop from the village across the high way when a group of police men chanced to pass that way.He complained that the police men deflated the tyres of his bike and warned him not to use the motor cycle any more for today.

Polling was quite brisk since the morning with upto 30 per cent votes polled at some booths during the first two hours of the commencement of polling.At village Narauli, nearly seven kms from Hydergarh a total of 177 out of 624 votes had been cast till 10.00 hours.Almost similar was the situation at polling stations at Subeha,Trivediganj and Hydergarh proper.Between 30 and 35 per cent votes had been polled at these booths during the first three hours.

However,both the Samajwadi Party and the Congress (I) have demanded cancellation of the Hydergarh byelection on the ground that polling was completely vitiated with blatant misuse of the official machinery in favour of the Chief Minister.

The UP Samajwadi Party President, Mr Ram Saran Das, alleged that polling booths in large numbers had been captured by the supporters of the BJP in Hydergarh.Irregularities on such a large scale were never witnessed in the history of Indian elections, Mr Das said.

He demanded that today's polling be cancelled and repoll ordered in the entire costituency.

Congress (I) leader, Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, making similar charges against the BJP led UP Government, said that his party workers had been assaulted and thrown out of polling stations by toughs employed by the BJP.He urged the Centre to dismiss Mr Rajnath Singh and order repolling in Hydergarh.

In Sadabad, another constituency in Uttar Pradesh where polling was held today the percentage of votes polled was estimated at nearly 52 to 55 per cent.Polling was completely peaceful here too, said an official spokesman at Lucknow.

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