Chumoukedima, Nagaland, April 20 (HBTV): There was no recorded voter turnout in the eastern districts of Nagaland where a shutdown and boycott of the Lok Sabha elections was announced by a community group.
The Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO) had announced it was ‘abstaining’ from voting in the elections as part of its demands for a separate autonomous administrative dispensation.
Tuensang town, one of the largest towns in eastern Nagaland, saw no voters across all its 80 polling stations.
The decision to abstain from participating in the electoral process stemmed from the ENPO’s “Chenmoho Resolution”, on February 23, 2024, “not to participate in any central and state election”.
This decision reverberated throughout the eastern Nagaland region, with polling stations in other districts also reporting a ‘zero turnout.’
The ENPO had declared an indefinite shutdown, invoking a so-called ‘eastern Nagaland public emergency,’ which came into effect from 6:00 pm on April 18. Despite the authorities dispatching polling officials to their designated stations on April 17 and the 18th from Tuensang town's Parade Ground, no voters turned up to cast their ballots.