BJP booth agent arrested for stopping UDF candidate in Manaloor

Thrissur: Police have arrested a BJP polling agent in Manaloor constituency after UDF candidate T N Prathapan alleged that he was blocked by the agent when the former was visiting the Kandassankadavu booth on polling day. Prathapan alleged that the agent had also tried to manhandle him. Police arrested Jayaprakashan (62) of Mangattukara Chulliyil, who was the agent at booth number 205 of St Mary's Convent Girls High School in Kandassankadavu, based on the complaint filed by the presiding officer. According to the FIR, the accused stopped the candidate who had entered the booth to assess the progress of the voting and disrupted the polling by creating a ruckus. The police have registered the case under Section 126(2) of BNS and Section 131 of the Representation of the People Act. However, the BJP candidate in the constituency K K Aneeshkumar denied the allegations. He alleged that it was Prathapan and those who accompanied him that had hurled abuses at the polling agent and assaulted him.