LIVE | Lok Sabha polls: 58.34% turnout till 5 pm; violence rocks Bengal
Voting is being held in all 13 seats of Punjab and 4 of Himachal, 13 in UP, 9 in Bengal, 8 in Bihar, 6 in Odisha, and 3 in Jharkhand, in addition to Chandigarh
A voter turnout of 58.34 per cent was recorded till 5 pm on Saturday (June 1) in the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha polls with incidents of violence between TMC and BJP supporters reported in Sandeshkhali region of West Bengal, and complaints of EVM glitches and rigging at some booths lodged.
A turnout of nearly 67.95 per cent was recorded in Jharkhand. Uttar Pradesh logged a polling percentage of 54, West Bengal 69.89, Bihar 48.86 and Himachal Pradesh 66.56. Punjab recorded a voter turnout of 55.20 per cent till 5 pm while Chandigarh registered a voting percentage of 62.80. Odisha recorded around 62.46 per cent voting.
The turnout in the first six phases of the general election was 66.14 per cent, 66.71 per cent, 65.68 per cent, 69.16 per cent, 62.2 per cent and 63.36 per cent respectively.
Violence in West Bengal
Reports of violence came in from West Bengal, especially in South 24-Parganas district, where a mob stormed a booth and took away an EVM machine. Later, the machine was found in a nearby pond. Clashes broke out between supporters of the TMC, ISF and the BJP in Jadavpur constituency as both parties clashed over stopping polling agents from entering the booths.
In Sandeshkhali, clashes broke out between TMC and BJP supporters over allegations of electoral malpractices. BJP candidate Rekha Patra alleged that TMC goons stopped voters from casting their votes. The TMC made counter allegations and accused Patra and BJP goons of trying to vitiate the poll atmosphere. As both the groups came to blows on Basanti expressway, police resorted to baton charge and tear gas shelling to disperse the mob.
All you need to know about Last Phase polls
Over 10.06 crore citizens, including nearly 5.24 crore men, 4.82 crore women and 3,574 third gender electors are voting in this phase.
Polling is on in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three seats in Jharkhand besides Chandigarh. Polling for the remaining 42 assembly constituencies of Odisha and bypolls to six assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh will also take place simultaneously.
Prominent Candidates
Other prominent candidates among the total 904 contestants in fray are Union minister Anurag Thakur, Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti and actor Kangana Ranaut.
Today's voting marks the end of the marathon polling process that began on April 19 and has already covered 486 Lok Sabha seats in 28 states and Union territories. The assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim also went to polls. Counting of votes will be taken up on June 4. In Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, the counting for the assembly polls will be held on June 2.
According to Election Commission guidelines, television channels and news outlets will be able to run exit poll data and its results on June 1 after 6.30 pm.
STATES GOING TO POLLS TODAY
UTTAR PRADESH
Constituencies going to polls: 13 of 80 (Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon, Ghosi, Salempur, Ballia, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Varanasi, Mirzapur, Robertsganj)
PUNJAB
Constituencies going to polls: All 13 (Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Khadoor Sahib, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Anandpur Sahib, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib, Faridkot, Firozpur, Bathinda, Sangrur, Patiala)
HIMACHAL PRADESH
Constituencies going to polls: All 4 (Kangra, Mandi, Hamirpur, Shimla)
Assembly segments due for bypolls – 6 (Gagret, Dharamsala, Barsar, Lahaul & Spiti, Kutlehar and Sujanpur)
BIHAR
Constituencies going to polls: 8 of 40 (Patna Sahib, Pataliputra, Arrah, Buxar, Sasaram, Karakat, Jahanabad, Nalanda)
JHARKHAND
Constituencies going to polls: 3 of 11 (Rajmahal, Dumka, Godda)
ODISHA
Constituencies going to polls: 6 of 21 (Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur)
WEST BENGAL
Constituencies going to polls: 9 of 42 (Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Diamond Harbour, Jadavpur, Kolkata Dakshin, Kolkata Uttar)
Live Updates
- 1 Jun 2024 3:18 PM IST
70-year-old dies at UP booth
A 70-year-old man died at a polling booth in UP’s Ballia on Saturday.
Sikandarpur Subdivisional Magistrate Ravi Kumar said Rambachan Chauhan (70), a resident of Chak Bahuddin village, had gone to vote at booth number 257 of the village’s primary school under Salempur Lok Sabha constituency.
Before joining the queue of voters, he suddenly fell unconscious and died, he added.
However, the villagers said Chauhan felt dizzy while standing in the voters’ queue and fell unconscious.
- 1 Jun 2024 3:08 PM IST
BJP’s Sita Soren alleges irregularities, demands re-poll in Dumka
BJP candidate from Jharkhand’s Dumka Lok Sabha seat, Sita Soren, on Saturday alleged irregularities in the voting process and demanded re-polling in the constituency.
Sita, the sister-in-law of jailed former chief minister Hemant Soren, claimed that the voting process was being intentionally delayed.
“I have visited several booths in Dumka urban and found irregularities. I have informed the deputy commissioner in this regard. Inexperienced booth level officers (BLOs) have been deployed due to which electors are facing trouble,” Sita said.
She alleged, “The delay is being done deliberately. I will write to Election Commission to cancel the voting here and conduct a re-poll.” Sita raised the issue after receiving complaints from voters about delays at booth numbers 44 and 45.
Sita, a three-time JMM MLA, joined the BJP on March 20, citing “isolation” and “neglect” by the JMM since the death of her husband, Durga Soren, in 2009.
CEO K Ravi Kumar denied her allegations and said polling is underway smoothly across three Lok Sabha constituencies — Dumka, Rajmahal and Godda.
