Bastar, Chhattisgarh:
Maoist-affected districts of Chhattisgarh voted today on the first day of two-phase polling which saw a turnout of 67% despite incidents of violence in which a jawan was killed and a Congress candidate injured. This was the first of state polls seen as a semi-final before next year's national election and the first major test for BJP's Narendra Modi, who is running for Prime Minister.
Here are the 10 developments in the story:
"The polling was marked by the enthusiasm of voters," said an Election Commission official after voting ended in 18 constituencies of Chhattisgarh. He said the turnout figure of 67% was tentative and might be revised. The rest of the state's 90 constituencies will vote on November 19.
Voters came out in large numbers even as Maoist violence disrupted polling in some areas. In Dantewada, a jawan was killed in an ambush at a polling booth and in Kanker, officials failed to reach two polling stations due to heavy firing by Maoists.
Maoists had also opened fire at the Border Security Force or BSF in Kanker in Bastar and three personnel were injured in blasts in Kanker and Rajnandgaon last night.
A staggering one lakh personnel drawn from across the country were posted for the constituencies that voted today, in the Maoist strongholds of Bastar and Rajnandgaon. (Chhattisgarh constituencies)
Maoists have threatened to do everything possible to derail the polls. Three bombs were found this morning, two of them outside a polling station in Dantewada. Several bombs had been found across the state in the past week.
Over a dozen choppers maintained air surveillance and air ambulances were kept on stand-by. Nearly 3,000 cameras monitored polling stations.
A Congress candidate from Jagdalpur was injured last night. Shamu Kashyap, reportedly chosen by Rahul Gandhi, alleged that he was attacked by BJP workers who asked him to stop "neta-giri (politics)." (Assembly elections 2013: Track live updates)
Chief Minister Raman Singh, who is fighting for a third straight term, was among the 143 candidates in the contest today. His main rival in Rajnandgaon is Congress's Alka Mudliyar, wife of Uday Mudliyar, who was killed in a Maoist ambush in May, which virtually wiped out the entire Congress leadership in the state.
The wife of Mahendra Karma - the founder of the anti-Naxal force Salwa Judum who was also killed in the attack - is contesting from Dantewada. Many believe the Congress is banking on the sympathy factor after the killing of its leaders.
After Chhattisgarh, voters in Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Mizoram will also vote for new state assemblies. All results will be declared after counting on December 8.
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