“One incident of an explosion was reported during this period from Point Pedro, Jaffna. CMEV was informed that the explosion was caused due to a hand grenade with no injuries reported,” the statement reads.
The Island newspaper reported that 70,000 policemen would be deployed to assist the elections following the rise of the election-related violence several days ahead of the elections. On Wednesday, CMEV reported the death of an opposition activist, who was seriously injured in a shooting accident on Monday.
"We will be very strict and severe on culprits who engage in acts of violence or instigate violence; we won’t hesitate to annul the result of any polling station affected by violence and malpractices," the election chief Mahinda Deshapriya was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
During the campaign period, CMEV recorded over 237 incidents of election-related violence, including assaults and property damages. The opposition has blamed the government for plans to use the military to prevent people from voting in several regions of Sri Lanka, according to Amnesty International.
According to the Official Government News portal, the polling stations have been opened since 7 a.m. local time (01:30 GMT). The main competitors are the incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who seeks the third term, and former Health Minister and the main opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena.
The opposition has repeatedly accused the incumbent president for corruption and human rights violations. Rajapaksa is also blamed for the mass killing of civilians during the campaign against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, also known as the Tamil Tigers, toward the end of the civil war.
The Tamil Tigers is a guerrilla organization that launched a campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka. The campaign evolved into a civil war in 1983, which lasted for 26 years.
