Third phase panchayat polls in Odisha sees 71 per cent voting

Bhubaneswar: Amid some stray incidents of violence, the third phase of panchayat polls in Odisha ended on Sunday with 71 per cent voting.

The election was held for 171 zilla parishad members at 18,495 booths in 1,382 panchayats of 63 Blocks in 29 districts across the state, reported PTI.

71 per cent out of 56.53 lakh voters turned up at the booths in this phase, State Election Commissioner Aditya Prasad Padhi said.

The polling began at 7 am and continued till 1 pm. Moreover, the commission has strongly condemned the attack on journalists in Binjharpur area of Jajpur district.

The DGP and Jajpur district administration have been directed to arrest the culprits.

Reports suggest, the three journalists had gone to cover the alleged loot of ballot boxes from two booths at Bachala Panchayat under Binjharpur block when they were brutally assaulted by unidentified miscreants. The vehicle of the journalists was also allegedly ransacked by the mob.