The police on Saturday clamped prohibitory orders in the district headquarter town of Kendrapada in Odisha after post-poll violence in the area, an official said.
The order slapped at the coastal town, about 100 km from State capital Bhubaneswar, prohibits the assembly of more than four people, district superintendent of police Rabi Narayan Behera told IANS.
“It will remain in force for 24 hours or until the situation normalises,” he said. Accusing the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) of rigging and tampering the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), the opposition parties on Friday staged demonstrations and protests in the town.
A mob also assaulted block development officer S.K.Pati, after they found 28 pairs of electronic voting machines kept in a government vehicle parked near his residence. The mob also ransacked his house. Police reached the site and rescued him and shifted him to a local hospital. He suffered injuries on his head.
Mr. Behera said a case has been registered against the mob.
A district election official said the EVMs were unused ones and kept for use when any EVM turned dysfunctional. The officer allegedly went to his home for some refreshment while he was on his way to deposit it to the authorities.
“We did not find any malafide intention behind it,” he said. Simultaneous elections for 21 Lok Sabha and 147 Assembly seats in Odisha were held in two phases on April 10 and April 17. The polling was held in the district of Kendrapada on Thursday in the second and final phase. The footage of a local television channel also showed how some people allegedly resorted to vote rigging in Aul area of the district.
The newly launched regional news channel Focus TV showed a man walking into the EVM enclosure along with a woman voter and helping her to press a specific button. The polling officials were seen watching it helplessly.
