21.68% voter turnout recorded in 5 seats of Bihar till 11 am

A voter turnout of 21.68 per cent was recorded till 11 am in the five Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar where polling was underway in the second phase on Friday, officials said.

The polling started at 7 am in Kishanganj, Katihar, Purnia, Bhagalpur and Banka constituencies, and would continue till 6 pm, they said.

Fifty candidates are in the fray in these five seats, and over 93 lakh people are eligible to decide their fate, they added.

In the first four hours, Purnea recorded a voter turnout of 25.9 per cent, Katihar registered 22.65 per cent, Kishanganj recorded 21.94 per cent, Bhagalpur registered 19.27 per cent and Banka recorded 18.75 per cent, officials said.

Speaking to reporters in Lakhisarai, Deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha said, "I urge people to exercise their franchise in large numbers. People must vote for the overall growth of the country as well as Bihar." Meanwhile, Congress's Kishanganj MP Mohd Javed, who is seeking re-election, filed a police complaint, alleging that his opponents issued a fake statement in his name asking voters to vote in favour of another candidate.

"It was an attempt by my opponents to mislead voters of Kishanganj. I filed a complaint against the suspects last night," he told reporters.

More than 150 companies of paramilitary forces are assisting the state police in ensuring free and fair elections in this phase, officials said.

The polling was underway amid intense heatwave conditions with the mercury shooting past the 40-degrees Celsius mark in most parts of the state.

Arrangements for tents and drinking water have been made at the polling stations, officials said.