Kolkata: Seven persons, including five Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, were killed, three injured and a number of electronic voting machines were damaged in stray violence during polling for 60-member Assemblies in the three North Eastern states of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya on February 26.

The turnout in Tripura was the highest - between 75 to 80 per cent, followed by 60 to 70 per cent in Nagaland and 55 per cent in Meghalaya.

Five BSF personnel and their civilian driver were shot dead and three other jawans injured by suspected National Liberation Front of Tripura militants, when the border guards were returning from poll duty, at Snatarampara in West Tripura district.

In Nagaland, one person was killed when activists of rival parties clashed at Changtongia town in Mokokchung district, home to Chief Minister S C Jamir.

Suspected militants also fired in the air to scare away voters in the same town.

Officials in Kohima said that although there were reports of clashes among workers of rival political parties, firing in the air by underground groups and damages to EVMs in certain areas, this did not adversely affect the polling process in the state.

PTI