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Voting is underway in the naxal-affected Karigundam area in Chhattisgarh after 23 years. Karigundam is part of the Dantewada (ST) constituency.
The polling process is being held under the security cover by the CRPF 150 Battalion and District Force. Meanwhile, as the elections got underway, the voters were seen standing outside a polling booth in the Karigundam area to cast their votes for the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections 2023. The Dantewada was won by the BJP's Bhima Mandavi in 2018 even as the Congress had swept 17 of the 20 seats that are going to the polls in this phase. Mandavi and four security personnel were killed days before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when their convoy was attacked by suspected Naxals in Dantewada district. This time the BJP is represented by Chaitram Atani a former member of the now outlawed Sulwa Judum movement. The Congress is represented by Chhavindra Karma the son of late Mahendra Karma who was a minister in the Congress government and a former Sulwa Judum leader. Karma was killed in the Naxal attack in Darbha Valley, Mahindra Karma wife was also a two term legislator. The voting process began for 10 seats at 7 am and for the remaining 10 seats, it began at 8 am amid tight security. The state of Chhattisgarh is undergoing elections in two phases, with the second phase scheduled for November 17. There are a total of 223 candidates in the fray for 20 seats. 5304 voting booths have been set up by the election commission for this phase. There are 40 lakh, 78 thousand, and 681 voters in this phase. Of these, there are 19 lakh, 93 thousand, 937 male voters and 20 lakh, 84 thousand, 675 female voters. In this phase 13 of the 20 seats are reserved for SC/STs. Overall, in the state, 29 seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs) and 10 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs). The counting of votes is scheduled for December 3. (ANI)
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