Sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections records 39.13% voter turnout by 1 pm
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TNR Desk
A voter turnout of 39.13 per cent was recorded by 1 pm on Saturday (May 25, 2024) across 58 constituencies in six states and two union territories during the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
Over 11.13 crore voters are eligible to vote in this phase, with the Election Commission (EC) deploying around 11.4 lakh polling officials at 1.14 lakh polling stations. The EC reported the highest voter turnout in West Bengal at 54.80 per cent. Scattered incidents of violence were reported in some areas of the eight Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal, with the EC receiving 954 complaints by 11 am regarding EVM malfunctions and polling agents being denied entry to booths. Despite these incidents, the EC maintained that voting has remained largely peaceful.
Jharkhand reported a voter turnout of 42.54 per cent, Uttar Pradesh 37.23 per cent, Bihar 36.48 per cent, Jammu and Kashmir 35.22 per cent, Haryana 36.48 per cent and Delhi 34.37 per cent, according to EC data.
In Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, contesting from the Anantnag-Rajouri seat, staged a sit-in outside Bijbehara police station protesting the alleged detention of her party workers and polling agents. She also claimed her outgoing calls were barred. Police asserted that the detained individuals were overground workers (OGWs) and the action was to ensure smooth elections.
In Delhi, prominent leaders, including President Droupadi Murmu, Union ministers S Jaishankar and Hardeep Singh Puri, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi minister Atishi and Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were among those who cast their votes. Kejriwal commented that people were voting against “dictatorship, price rise and unemployment”.
Polling is underway in 14 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, all 10 seats in Haryana, eight seats each in Bihar and West Bengal, six seats in Odisha, four seats in Jharkhand and one seat in Jammu and Kashmir. Additionally, polling is being conducted for 42 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and the Karnal Assembly bypoll in Haryana.
In Haryana, BJP’s Karnal Lok Sabha seat candidate Manohar Lal Khattar and Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, who is contesting the Karnal Assembly bypoll, were among the early voters. Saini cast his vote in Ambala district’s Naraingarh and Khattar voted in Karnal.
In West Bengal, voting is taking place in the Jangal Mahal region, which sends eight representatives to Lok Sabha. The BJP won five and TMC three of these seats in the 2019 polls. Uttar Pradesh’s polling is happening in constituencies such as Sultanpur, Pratapgarh, Phulpur, Allahabad, Ambedkar Nagar and others. Around 82.16 lakh voters are eligible in Jharkhand’s constituencies of Giridih, Dhanbad, Ranchi and Jamshedpur.
In Bihar, 86 candidates are vying for seats in Valmiki Nagar, Pashchim Champaran, Purbi Champaran, Sheohar, Siwan, Gopalganj, Maharajganj and Vaishali. Odisha is holding elections in six parliamentary constituencies alongside 42 Assembly seats.
