Monday, February 14 2005 09:47 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna/Ranchi: Candidates and their supporters today (Feb 14, 2005) stepped up their door-to-door campaign in a final assault to woo the voters as the stage is set for the second phase of Assembly polls in Bihar and Jharkhand tomorrow (Feb 15, 2005) amidst tight security.

An estimated 58,44,049 voters are expected to exercise their franchise in Jharkhand to seal the fate of 456 candidates including Chief Minister Arjun Munda who is contesting from Kharsawan.

In Bihar, nearly 1.8 electorate will choose their representatives from among 1014 candidates prominent among who are Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Abdul Bari Siddiqui and Ministers Pitambar Paswan, Ashok Singh and Shakuni Choudhary belonging to the ruling party.

Authorities beefed up security to ensure peaceful balloting for 83 constituencies in Bihar and 29 in Jharkhand, where the naxalites have given a poll boycott call.

An array of star campaigners, including Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veterans Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Mulayam Singh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati took part in the electioneering.

The run up to the second phase of polling was marred by controversy over screening of CDs on Gujarat riots in some districts of Bihar prompting the Election Commission to lodge an FIR against unidentified persons for election model code violation.

Tightening its leash against such violations, the EC postponed polling in four constituencies in Bihar- Surajgarh, Bahera, Ghanshyampur and Jale - following detection of large scale irregularities in the poll process there.

While polling in Surajgarh will be held on Feburary 26, the exercise in the other three constituencies is scheduled for February 18.

Following the display of posters and screening of CDs on Gujarat riots in Kishanganj and Purnea districts of Bihar, the EC also issued notice to the ruling RJD asking it to explain the factual position on the whole episode.

RJD supremo Laloo Prasad and his Chief Minister wife Rabri Devi made whistle stop tours of constituencies to woo voters in the battle said to be decisive for the future of Bihar.

In an apparent reflection of her party's uneasy relations with RJD, Sonia Gandhi, addressing a string of election meetings, voiced concern over the law and order situation in Bihar.

The Congress is locked in friendly fights with the RJD in many of the 243 constituencies in the State, where it is having a tie-up with Ramvilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

Of the 83 constituencies going to polls in the second phase, RJD is contesting 68, BJP 32 and its ally JD-U (Janata Dal-United) 49. LJP is in the fray in 57, BSP in 79, SP in 49, CPI (Communist Party of India) in 7 and NCP (Nationalist Congress Part) in 15.

In Jharkhand, polling will take place tomorrow amidst aerial surveillance and stepped up security in the wake of poll boycott call by naxals.

Campaigning during the first phase on February 3 in Jharkhand witnessed the killing of a sitting MLA Mahendra Singh.