Stone-pelting in Samana; youth electrocuted

Patiala: Violence broke out in Samana during polling for Punjab's local body elections on Tuesday, with stone-pelting reported near a booth in Ward No. 19 and a youth injured after coming into contact with a live wire amid the chaos.Polling across the 21 wards of the Samana Municipal Council began on an enthusiastic note but soon turned turbulent, with opposition parties alleging booth capturing, bogus voting and intimidation by ruling party supporters. The tension triggered panic among voters and disrupted polling in parts.The situation escalated in Ward 19 (Ram Basti) after a confrontation between locals and police over alleged fake voting. Residents resorted to stone-pelting, prompting a lathi-charge by police. Amid the commotion, Yakub Ram climbed onto a nearby rooftop in protest but suffered severe burn injuries after touching a high-voltage line. He was first taken to a local facility and later referred to Government Rajindra Hospital, Patiala.Following the incident, residents staged protests, raising slogans against the government and demanding countermanding of the poll in the ward. Some locals also alleged that police fired warning shots.Opposition leaders accused ruling party workers, allegedly in connivance with police, of targeting booths across multiple wards to enable bogus voting. Police, however, downplayed the allegations. Samana DSP Fateh Singh Brar said the disturbance was confined to the area outside a polling station and stemmed from a verbal altercation inside the booth. He said two policemen were injured in stone-pelting and that a "mild lathi-charge" was used to disperse the crowd.Brar maintained that polling inside booths remained peaceful under CCTV surveillance and termed the electrocution an accident unrelated to the clash. Police said video footage is being examined and an FIR will be registered based on evidence.Former MLA Rajinder Singh alleged widespread booth capturing, intimidation of candidates and damage to CCTV cameras in several wards, claims denied by the administration. Some candidates also accused ruling party workers of obstructing polling and attempting to influence the process.Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal said minor disruptions were reported in a few pockets but the situation was brought under control. He confirmed that polling was briefly interrupted in some wards and that a request for a re-poll in one ward—likely Ward No. 3—is under consideration. He said the injured youth is stable and a fact-finding inquiry has been ordered.