New Delhi:
A day before the elections get underway, the Maoists have raised the red flag. On Wednesday there was violence in Bihar and Jharkhand and with several Naxal hit seats voting on Thursday, the fear is that several voters could prefer to stay at home.
South west Bihar, where the Maoists struck, is part of the Sasaram Lok Sabha constituency that goes to the polls on Thursday. In fact, out of the 13 constituencies where voting will happen in the first phase, seven are hotbeds of Naxal activity.
The forces on the ground say they aren't enough of them.
Says Praveen Yadav, BSF Commander of Dhansa: "There should have been more forces. Forces in the area are not enough."
In fact the Naxal-hit states have less than a third of the forces they had during the last elections.
On Thursday, most Naxal-affected seats will be voting. This includes 7 out of 11 seats in Chhattisgarh. All the seats in Jharkhand. Half the seats in Orissa.
As forces gear up for more attacks, NDTV has learnt that the states had asked for more phases in Maoist areas.
Says election official Balakrishan: "There were major concerns about security in Naxal areas, extensive security measures have been taken including the use of helicopters to move the EVMs and personnel in some areas."
Officials are keeping their fingers crossed. The latest naxal attacks won't stop people from voting.