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Five people, including two security personnel, were killed and several others were injured in scattered incidents of violence, arson, intimidation and rigging in Assam, even as preliminary reports suggested an estimated turnout of about 60 per cent when polling ended at 1600 hours IST in the trouble-torn state.
A Central Reserve Police Force jawan and an Assam Police constable were killed when suspected militants ambushed a sector security party under Bokajan police station in Karbi Anglong district.
A civilian driver of the ambushed vehicle was killed in the incident, police sources said.
The three have been identified as P C Deojan, L P Laskar and Ram Lal.
Two Bodo voters were killed in a group clash between Bodos and Santhals in western Assam's Kokrajhar district before noon. The clash claimed the lives of Dambaru Daimary and Manjit Basumatary.
A PTI report said that four persons, including two Border Security Force men and an assistant sub-inspector of police, were killed and three BSF jawans injured in a bomb explosion by suspected United Liberation Front of Assam activists in Sibsagar district on Thursday night, official sources said.
The security personnel were escorting the polling officials from Sussry to Somari in a mini truck, the sources said.
The driver of the vehicle was also killed in the attack.
Reports of rigging came in from various districts like Hailakandi, Kamrup and Kokrajhar, but by and large polling was brisk and peaceful under the watchful eyes of nearly 75,000 troops that were deployed across the state.
Two persons sustained bullet injuries when miscreants fired at voters at a polling station in Fakiragram under Kokrajhar west constituency around 0900 hours IST. The injured, Subroto Roy and Nana Singh, were admitted to hospital.
Polling continued there, election officials said.
Elsewhere in Barama, a jeep was burnt around 1000 hours IST. Rekha Rani Das Boro, a minister in the Prafulla Kumar Mahanta ministry, is seeking re-election from this seat.
Barama is part of the insurgency-infested Nalbari district, bordering Bhutan, from where militants of the banned United Liberation Front of Asom operate. However, voting has not been affected.
In neighbouring Bhabanipur constituency, a polling booth was attacked by militants and ballot boxes were taken away. Fresh ballot boxes were sent to the booth, the election control room in Guwahati said.
In western Assam's Goalpara district, voting had to be suspended for about 40 minutes following a clash between supporters of the ruling Asom Gana Parishad and Nationalist Congress Party.
EARLIER REPORTSSporadic violence in Assam; 28 % voting so farCRPF party ambushed in Assam, jawan killed
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