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Security tightened for assembly polls

The stage is set for Thursday's assembly polls in Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal and the Union territory of Pondicherry in what is being dubbed as "mini general elections" and a test of popularity for the Vajpayee government after the Tehelka expose.

An estimated 130 million electorate are eligible to exercise their franchise in 823 assembly constituencies where over 5,000 candidates including chief ministers of Assam, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal are in the fray.

The assembly polls assume significance in view of new alignment of political forces in West Bengal, where the Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front government's uninterrupted reign of 24 years is being challenged. In Tamil Nadu, the opposition challenge is being led by All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo J Jayalalitha, who was disqualified from contesting the polls.

Polling will be held for 234 seats in Tamil Nadu, 294 in West Bengal, 140 in Kerala, 125 in Assam and 30 in Pondicherry.

Election in the Dibrugarh assembly constituency was countermanded following the killing of BJP candidate Jayanta Dutta on May 1.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made in the four states and Pondicherry to ensure free and peaceful polling.

In West Bengal, a red alert has been sounded in five districts along the Indo-Bangladesh border - South Dinajpur, North Dinajpur, Malda, Nadia and North 24 Parganas- to check infiltration. About 42,600 state policemen have been deployed in all districts except Calcutta.

Fifteen per cent of the 61,542 polling booths have been identified as "sensitive" in the state.

Besides, 300 additional Rapid Action Force personnel have been stationed in both north and south Bengal for any emergency, while two companies of additional central forces have been kept in the tea gardens in trouble-torn Jalpaiguri district to keep a vigil on Naxalite militants.

In Assam, security has been put on maximum alert following attacks by suspected United Liberation Front of Asom militants in the run up to elections which left 37 people dead and more than 50 injured.

In Kerala, additional police forces have been deployed in sensitive Kannur, Kasargode and Kozhikode districts.

In Kerala, about 21.6 million voters will decide the fate of 675 candidates including Congress Working Committee member A K Antony, front convenor K Sankaranarayanan and former minister M V Raghavan.

In Tamil Nadu, over 40 million voters are eligible to exercise the franchise to decide the fate of 1,857 candidates.

Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, who is contesting for the tenth time, is seeking re-election from Chepauk constituency in Madras. His son M K Stalin is contesting from Thousand Lights constituency also in the city.

Electronic Voting Machines will be used for the first time in all constituencies.

By-elections to three Lok Sabha seats of Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu, Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh and Midnapore in West Bengal will be held along with the assembly polls.

The by-elections have been necessitated following the death of Union Minister P R Kumaramangalam, Congress leader Jitendra Prasada and CPI veteran Indrajit Gupta.

By-elections to two assembly constituencies - Kshetrigao (Manipur) and Banamalipur (Tripura) - will be held on May 10 and May 11 respectively.

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