Bhubaneswar, April 16 (Inditop) Maoist rebels attacked a polling booth and set fire to voting machines and a vehicle in Orissa’s Malkangiri district while voting for the first phase of general and assembly elections was underway Thursday, police said.
“The rebels attacked the polling booth in Andrahill village. They burnt voting machines and a poll vehicle,” District Superintendent of Police Satyabrata Bhoi told IANS.
“As per information reaching here, the rebels also attacked two more booths in the interior region of Kalimela. We are verifying it,” he added.
The Maoists have called for a complete boycott of the polls in the state. The Malkangiri district is considered as a stronghold of the guerrillas.
On Wednesday, the rebels felled trees and dug up roads in Malkangiri, Koraput and Rayagada districts to create hurdles for poll officials.
Orissa will elect 147 members to the state assembly and 21 members to the Lok Sabha simultaneously on April 16 and April 23.
The fate of 72 candidates for 10 Lok Sabha seats and 599 candidates for 70 assembly seats will be decided by 12.6 million voters in the first phase Thursday.
rounak