Brisk polling with a voter turnout of 82 per cent was recorded till 3 pm in the first phase of the Manipur assembly election on Saturday.
The second phase will be held on March 8.
Irom casts vote
Rights activists Irom Sharmila cast her vote at a polling booth of Khurai assembly constituency.
Elections were held in 38 assembly constituencies in the first phase. Except for some minor incidents, polling was by and large peaceful, officials said.
Over 8,400 personnel from the CRPF were deployed for security in 1,643 polling stations in 38 constituencies. Altogether there are 60 constituencies in the State.
For the first time ,there were no police or State paramilitary personnel in the polling stations.
Erendro, a candidate of the People's Resurgence and Justice Alliance formed by Ms. Sharmila was allegedly assaulted by some persons. He reportedly lodged a complaint with police.
168 in the fray
There were 168 candidates in Saturday's polls and seven of them are women.
There were reports of technical snags in few EVMs. Polling stations with defective EVMs functioned long after 3 pm, the official closing time.
The BJP is hopeful of forming the government in with the hectic canvassing by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and other star campaigners.
Congress eyeing fourth success
If the Congress wins the polls, it will their fourth consecutive term.
Apart from Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, no other party leader from Delhi were visible in the campaign.
