6,500 polling personnel, 3,000 policemen, 12 companies of CAPF to be deployed in Mizoram for polls

Aizawl: At least 6,500 polling personnel, over 3,000 policemen and 12 companies of  Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) will be deployed in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in Mizoram, a senior election official said on Monday.

Polling for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the state will be held in a single phase on Friday.

Mizoram Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Madhup Vyas said that the election commission is ready to conduct the Lok Sabha polls.

“All arrangements have been completed and we have also commissioned the EVMs. We are now ready for the polls,” Vyas said.

He said that 6,500 polling personnel will be involved in the upcoming polls and two rounds of training for them have been conducted.

The third round and final round of training for polling personnel will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, he said

Vyas said that polling personnel, who are assigned to 168 polling stations, will be dispatched to their respective polling stations on Wednesday, and the remaining will be dispatched on Thursday.

He said that the Election Commission has made proper security arrangements and 12 companies of CAPF comprising 7 companies of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), 3 companies of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and 2 companies of Border Security Force (BSF) apart from over 3,000 state policemen will be deployed across the state during the Lok Sabha polls.

According to the CEO, 1,276 polling stations and 4 auxiliary polling stations have been set up across the state, of which 751 are in rural areas and 525 are in urban areas.

There are 14 vulnerable polling stations and 5 critical polling stations, which are mainly in inter-state border and international border areas, he said.

11 polling stations are accessible only by foot, while 15 other polling stations can only be accessed by boat.

136 polling stations will be manned by women and one by Persons with Disability (PwD), the CEO also said.

Over 8.56 lakh electorates, including 4.4 lakh female voters, are eligible to exercise their franchise in the upcoming polls as per the final roll published in February, according to Vyas.

Six candidates — one each from the ruling Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), opposition Mizo National Front (MNF), Congress, BJP, People's Conference (PC) party and an independent candidate- are in the fray for the lone Lok Sabha seat.

ZPM fielded an entrepreneur Richard Vanlalhmangaiha, who is a newbie in politics, MNF nominated incumbent Rajya Sabha member K. Vanlalvena and Congress also fielded political debutant Lalbiakzama, who is a retired Mizoram Police Service (MPS) officer and former state home secretary.

BJP fielded its state president Vanlalhmuaka, while the PC party fielded well-known singer and lyricist Rita Malsawmi.

Lalhriatrenga Chhangte, who lost the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, also contested again this time as an independent.

In the last Lok Sabha polls held in April 2019, then-ruling MNF nominee C. Lalrosanga defeated his nearest opponent Lalnghinglova Hmar, an independent candidate backed by Congress and ZPM, by a margin of 8,140 votes.

The MNF had a vote share of 44.9 per cent, Congress-ZPM combined — 43.6 per cent and BJP — 5.75 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.