The counting of votes for the assembly elections in four states- Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, has started amid tight security arrangements today (Sunday), in the final stretch of the battle billed as the semifinal before the mega final in 2024.
However, the counting of votes in Mizoram, which also went to polls along with four other states last month, has been pushed back to December 4, Monday, the Election Commission (EC) informed earlier. The polling in five states, straddling the north, east and southern parts of the country, is tipped to set the course of the political headwinds going into the Lok Sabha elections next year.
Confirming the rescheduling of counting in the tiny Northeast state earlier, the poll panel the decision was taken following representations from civil society in the state, as Sunday holds a special significance for the people in the Christian-majority state.
The votes will be counted for 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh, 90 seats in Chhattisgarh, 119 in Telangana and 199 seats in Rajasthan. However, polling for one seat in Rajasthan was pushed back earlier following the death of the Congress candidate.
“All arrangements for the counting of votes in Chhattisgarh have been completed and officials in adequate numbers have been posted for the purpose in all the 90 assembly constituencies,” the state's chief electoral officer, Reena Baba Saheb Kangale, told reporters on Saturday.
“The counting of votes will start from 8 am in all 90 assembly constituencies. For the counting process, we have assigned 90 returning officers, 416 assistant returning officers, 4596 counting personnel and 1698 micro-observers,” Kangale added.
Meanwhile, speaking to ANI on Saturday, Praveen Gupta, the chief electoral officer for Rajasthan, said all arrangements have been put in place to ensure that the counting of votes goes off without a hitch.
“All the arrangements are in place for the counting day and the officials have arrived at the designated centres as well. The votes will be counted across 36 centres at the headquarters of district election officers in a centralised manner. All necessary preparations have been made to ensure that the process goes off without a hitch,” Gupta told ANI.
Adequate security arrangements have been made at all counting centres in the state. Counting for the 199 Assembly constituencies will be done. Once the strong room is opened, the postal ballots, which number about 5 lakh, will be counted first. A total of 1121 assistant returning officers (ARO) have been assigned for the counting process,” the CEO added.
Adequate security arrangements have also been made in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, which will see the fates of candidates vying for 236 Assembly seats being decided on counting day.
About the security arrangements at the counting centres, the Commissioner of Police, Bhopal, Harinarayan Chari Mishra, said, “Adequate police personnel have been deployed for the counting of votes. The teams will evaluate and further stock of the security arrangements in and around the counting centres once the counting gets underway tomorrow. The movement of traffic will be diverted on the main road.”
Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel have also been deployed to keep watch on the electronic voting machines (EVMs) and take them from strong rooms to counting centres, the CEO informed, adding that requisite security arrangements have also been made outside the counting centres.
