Village in Maharashtra decides to boycott LS polls over issue of encroachments

Residents of a village in the Parbhani Lok Sabha constituency decided to boycott the elections on Friday to protest against the issue of encroachments, prompting the collector to visit the place and appeal to them.

Polling in Hingoli, Nanded and Parbhani constituencies in Marathwada began on Friday morning.

Parbhani Collector and returning officer Raghunath Gawde arrived at Balsa Khurd village, located around 7 km from Parbhani city, and interacted with villagers, urging them to vote.

The village, which has 1,200 voters, boycotted the elections over the longstanding issue of encroachments.

The collector held a meeting with villagers, who sought assurance from the administration that the problem would be solved.

"We will hold a meeting on the encroachment issue once the election code of conduct is lifted, and the problem will be addressed in a month," Gawde said.

Villagers will exercise their franchise if the administration gives a written assurance about resolving the issue, a resident of the village said.