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Delhi poll body puts all five polling stations in Shaheen Bagh under 'critical' category

Ahead of the February 8 Delhi assembly election, Election Commission officials on Wednesday visited city's Shaheen Bagh area where protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) are going on for 50 days. 

The poll body has put all five polling stations in the area under the "critical" category, Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Ranbir Singh said. 

Singh said confidence-building measures are being undertaken to reassure voters.

Shaheen Bagh falls under the Okhla assembly constituency. The area has become the epicentre of anti-CAA protests in the national capital and the agitation has been thrust by political parties into a poll issue.

Addressing a press conference, Singh said Shaheen Bagh is under "tight vigil" and voters will face no problems as "their is no obstruction" in areas where poll activities are to be conducted.

Accompanied by the district election officer and nodal police officers, Singh had visited Shaheen Bagh area on Friday to assess the situation and preparedness ahead of the assembly elections on February 8.

A team of South-East district election body also visited Shaheen Bagh area for voter awareness on Wednesday. 

"In view of the ongoing protests in Shaheen Bagh, we have declared all five polling stations in the area as critical polling stations. There are about 40 booths encompassing those five stations. All these booths are therefore under the critical category," Singh told reporters on Wednesday.

Singh said polling stations falling in the "critical category" get paramilitary cover and activities will be monitored through webcasting.

The poll official said that police forces and the election machinery are on "extra vigil" and assessing the situation all the time across the national capital.

Polls for the 70 assembly seats in Delhi are due on February 8 with the counting of votes on February 11.

Singh said security personnel carry out marches and patrolling in the area to boost the confidence of voters and "I see no reason to worry".

"During my visit on Friday, the pulse I got from the local people was that there is no fear in their mind and the ongoing issue and the protests have not affected their psyche. We are quite hopeful that voters in the area will come out and exercise their franchise without any fear," he said.

The Delhi CEO also said that no complaint has been received from local people of Shaheen Bagh about any safety issue they feel would be on the polling day.

The anti-CAA protests at Shaheen Bagh, on a stretch of a main road on the Kalindi Kunj side, have been going on for over 50 days in south Delhi. 

Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting since December 15 at Shaheen Bagh against the CAA and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

There are 13,750 polling booths, besides one auxiliary booth, located at 2,689 locations across Delhi.

Singh said there are total 1,47,86,382 people who are eligible to vote in the Delhi polls, including 2,32,815 in the age group of 18 to 19 years.

"As far as critical polling stations are concerned, there are 516 locations and 3704 booths in that category," he said.

Delhi Assembly elections will be held on February 8 while counting of votes will be conducted on February 11. 

The ruling AAP is locked in a triangular contest with the BJP and the Congress but is favourite to retain the Union Territory. 

The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP had won 67 seats in the 70-member assembly in 2015 assembly elections, defying all expectations. While the party hopes to repeat its performance.

(With PTI inputs)

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