Punjan Newsline, New Delhi, June 1-
The 57 seats voting in the last and the seventh phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024 saw about 58.34 per cent voter turnout till 5 pm, the Election Commission of India said on Saturday.
Voting is underway since 7 am to decide the fate of 904 candidates, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, across 57 seats in seven states and one Union Territory in the last and final phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024.
Himachal Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of about 48.6 per cent followed by Jharkhand with 46.8 per cent turnout till 1 pm. West Bengal saw about 45. per cent, Uttar Pradesh about 39.3 per cent and Bihar recorded a turnout of about 35.6 per cent till 1 pm. Chandigarh UT saw a turnout of about 40 per cent till 1 pm, according to Election Commission of India.
Sporadic incidents of violence marred the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal, as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various parts of violence-prone Jadavpur, Diamond Harbour constituencies, according to news agency PTI
Earlier in the day, the PM called upon the voters to turnout in large numbers and vote. “I hope young and women voters exercise their franchise in record numbers. Together, let’s make our democracy more vibrant and participative," he said.
The states where voting is being held in the seventh phase today are Punjab (all 13 seats), Uttar Pradesh (13 seats), West Bengal (9 seats), Bihar (8 seats), Himachal Pradesh (all 4 seats), Jharkhand (3 seats), Odisha (six seats) and the lone seat of Chandigarh Union Territory.
The voting began at 7 am. Apart from PM Modi, the other candidates in the fray today include BJP leaders Kangana Ranaut, Ravi Kishan and Anurag Thakur, Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh, RJD leader Misa Bharti, and TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee, to name a few.
Elections are also being held for 42 assembly constituencies in Odisha along with Lok Sabha polls. The votes will be counted on June 4.
Over 10 crore electors, including 5.24 crore men, 4.82 crore women and 3,574 third-gender voters are eligible to vote in today's phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024.
About 10.9 lakh polling officials have been deployed on duty across 1.09 lakh polling stations, the Election Commission said.
Today's polling will mark a finish to world’s largest polling marathon that began on April 19 and already covered 6 phases and 486 Lok Sabha seats. Counting of votes will take place on 4th June. Lok Sabha Elections 2024 held over 44 days between April 19 and June 1 is what has been the second-longest elections after the first general elections held in India in 1951-52.