Amir Tantray
Doda, Apr 22 : As the polling for the first phase of General Election on Udhampur Parliamentary Constituency was held successfully and peacefully, it brought misery to two families in Doda district as one official died and another suffered injuries.
A clerk in Project Office (PO) ICDS in Bhagwah Tehsil of district Doda Ghulam Qadir died after a cardiac arrest whereas another Teacher in school education department Firdous Ahmed Gattu suffered two fractures on his ankle.
According to the news agency Ghulam Qadir died on Saturday morning after he got exemption from deputy commissioner Doda from election duty a day prior to polling whereas Gattu slipped from a hilltop while returning from a polling station in Gundoh area of the district.
An official of district electoral office (DEO) Doda told news agency, that Qadir was deputed to election duty to 51 Assembly segment (Bhaderwah) and reached to the town on April 17. “Ghulam Qadir was kept in reserve list of the polling staff and was being sent to polling station number 36 Bajja in 51 Assembly segment. After spending April 17 night with a friend in Bhaderwah, he felt some pain in the leg and was not able to walk properly,” the official said.
“Meanwhile District Electoral Officer (DEO) Doda Harvinder Singh visited Bhaderwah and Qadir asked for exemption on the basis of his health condition. The DEO immediately exempted him from the duty and appointed some other person on his place,” the official informed.
Qadir reached home at Bhagwah on April 18 evening and on April 19 evening his pain increased and was shifted to the associated hospital of Government Medical College (GMC) Doda where he suffered a massive cardiac arrest on April 20 morning and breathed his last.
On the other hand, Firdous Ahmed Gattu, a resident of Doda town, was part of a polling party deputed to Khatasoo polling station (89) on a hilltop in Gundoh area of 51 Assembly segment. “It was raining heavily throughout the day and in the evening when the polling party was returning. The polling party had to walk several kilometers to reach nearest road and board the vehicles to return to Bhaderwah. While returning, Gattu slipped and fell down resulting in two fractures near his ankle and he was helped by security forces and other members of the polling party towards the vehicle and from where he was shifted to associated hospital GMC Doda in an ambulance,” a relative of Gattu told news agency.
He has been now taken to Amritsar in neighboring state of Punjab for the treatment where he has to be operated by the doctors.
The district administration has taken the cognizance of Gattu’s injury but there was no clarity about Ghulam Qadir and nobody is aware about his case that his pain started while he was deputed to election duty in Bhaderwah.
