Result in five-candidate Gadchiroli by 1pm

MUMBAI: Five-candidate Gadchiroli is likely to be the first Lok Sabha constituency in the state to know its representative on May 23. An announcement is expected about 1 pm. Elsewhere in the state, the trends will be available by 2 pm.
“We expect that since there are only five candidates in the fray in Gadchiroli, results may be declared by 1 pm,” a bureaucrat said. Gadchiroli will be followed by Satara with nine candidates, Latur with 10, Nandurbar with 11, and Ratnagiri and Palghar with 12 each, said the official.

Beed has the most candidates at 36 and the result there will be declared last as counting of votes is likely to take a long time, said the bureaucrat.
The bureaucrat said that across the country where nominees are only five or six, results may be declared by 1 pm. Five constituencies in West Bengal, Burdwan Durgapur, Burdwan Pura, Ranaghat, Alipurduar and Bolpur, have six to seven nominees. In Kerala and Gujarat too, in certain Lok Sabha seats, there are fewer than six nominees.
The official said the Election Commission in the state led by chief electoral officer Ashwani Kumar was now prepared for the counting of votes on May 23. “Again, it will be a crucial task. We have involved more than a lakh personnel for the counting of votes for 48 Lok Sabha constituencies at 43 locations across the state,” the official said.
The bureaucrat said that while trends in most constituencies would be available by 2 pm, final counting of votes may be delayed slightly owing to the counting of VVPAT slips in five booths in every assembly segment. “Had the Supreme Court not dismissed the petition for counting of 50% of the VVPAT slips, then there would have been an inordinate delay in counting. We believe that notwithstanding the contention of the opposition members, there is absolutely no scope for tampering of EVMs,” the official said.
The bureaucrat said that in accordance with the directions of the Election Commission of India, model counting centres would be set up on Monday, May 13, at most revenue divisions to impart training to returning and assistant returning officers on counting votes. “It will be hands-on training for the election staff. It will be completed within a week. As a result, the entire counting process on May 23 will be hassle-free and foolproof. Once the counting starts, the one-lakh-and-odd employees will be at the counting centres for 96 hours,” the official said.
On police deployment, the bureaucrat said adequate force would be deployed at all counting centres, while special protection would be provided for the Gadchiroli counting centre, where 15 police personnel were killed in a Naxal attack.