Agartala, Feb 08, 2023, IANS

Agartala, Feb 8 (IANS) Under the 'vote-from-home' system, physically challenged (PwD), 80 plus senior citizens, and Covid suspect and affected voters were exercising their Right to Vote for the Tripura Assembly on Wednesday, officials said.

Election officials visited the homes of the physically challenged, 80 plus senior citizens, and Covid suspects and affected voters, who would cast their votes through postal ballots.

Tripura Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gitte Kirankumar Dinkarrao said that around 8,000 voters belonging to physically challenged, senior citizens (80 plus), and Covid suspect and affected voters would cast their votes at their homes.

He said a polling team composed of two polling officials along with a videographer and security would go to the elector's house along with a voting compartment and get the electors to vote on the postal ballot maintaining complete secrecy of vote.

Concerned candidates can send their representatives to witness the polling procedure. Postal ballots would then be stored securely by the Returning Officer, the CEO said.

Dinkarrao also said that balloting through the postal ballots by the security personnel, election officials, polling personnel and those who would be engaged in the February 16 Assembly polls also started on Wednesday and it would continue during the next few days.

Over 35,000 voters comprising security personnel, election officials, polling personnel and others would cast their votes through the postal ballots.

A total of 259 candidates, including 31 women nominees, would contest the February 16 election to the 60-member Tripura Assembly, the CEO said.

In the 2018 Assembly polls, 297 candidates, including 24 women, had fought the elections.

The CEO said that of the 259 candidates, the highest number of 55 candidates have been put up by the ruling BJP, followed by CPI(M) (43), Tipra Motha Party (42), Trinamool Congress (28), and Congress (13).

Even as the BJP allotted five seats to its junior ally Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), the latter has fielded six candidates.

At Ampinagar in southern Tripura, the BJP has nominated Patal Kanya Jamatiya while the IPFT has fielded sitting MLA Sindhu Chandra Jamatia.

A total of 58 Independent candidates and 14 nominees from various smaller parties are also contesting the elections.