Guwahati: Around 50 per cent polling was recorded in the first phase of the panchayat election in Assam on Wednesday, during which voters at several places complained of anomalies in ballot papers and voters list, officials said.
Nearly 50 per cent votes were polled till the closing time of 3 pm but the exact figure would be known late in the evening as there were still long queues of voters at several polling stations, State Election Commission (SEC) sources said. Anomalies in ballot papers and voters lists were found at several places in Kamrup, Tinsukia, Biswanath and Jorhat districts.
Complaints of mismatch in the candidate's name and party in ballot papers came from Nagarbera area in Kamrup district and Tipaimukh in Tinsukia district, while incorrect names of contestants were also detected in ballot papers at Lachitgarh Gaon in Kamrup district, the sources said.
Contestant's names were also missing in ballot papers at Titabor in Jorhat district.
State Election Commissioner H N Bora told PTI that the anomalies in ballot papers were settled locally with printing of fresh ballot papers to continue the voting process.
The SEC attributed the name-symbol mismatch in ballot papers to "careless printing".
There were also reports that people burnt some ballot papers at Hathipara in Nagaon district alleging poor quality of the papers, affecting the polling process temporarily.
Bora said he was waiting for police reports on this.