Brisk polling is being reported in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections today. Eighty-eight Parliamentary Constituencies spread over 12 States and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir are being covered in this phase. These include 20 seats in Kerala, 14 in Karnataka, 13 in Rajasthan, 8 each in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, 6 in Madhya Pradesh, 5 each in Assam and Bihar, 3 seats each in West Bengal and Chhattisgarh and 1 seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir. The polling for the Betul (ST) Parliamentary Constituency of Madhya Pradesh which was scheduled in the second phase will now be held in the third phase due to the demise of the BSP candidate.
Voting started in most of the constituencies at 7 this morning and will conclude at 6 in the evening. However, timings vary in North Eastern States and Left-Wing Extremism-affected areas.
Our correspondents from different parts of the country report that long queues of voters are being witnessed at different polling booths. Special enthusiasm is seen among youth and women voters.
Some of the prominent candidates whose political fate are being sealed in the EVMs today include Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Tejasvi Surya, Hema Malini, Arun Govil and Om Birla from BJP. Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor, DK Suresh from Congress and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy of JDS. A total of 1,202 candidates along with four candidates from the Outer Manipur Lok Sabha constituency are in the fray in this phase.
Over 16 lakh Polling officials have been deployed across 1.67 lakh polling stations. Nearly 16 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the second phase. Akashvani Correspondent reports that nearly 35 lakh first-time voters are registered to cast their votes in this phase.
Voter turnout (till 1 PM) recorded in Kerala over 39%, in Karnataka it is more than 38%, in Rajasthan, over 40%, in Uttar Pradesh over 36%, in Maharashtra nearly 32% and in Madhya Pradesh, nearly 39%. 5 seats in Assam saw a voter turnout of over 46%, 5 seats of Bihar recorded over 34%, West Bengal recorded over 47% for 3 Parliamentary constituencies, 3 seats of Chhattisgarh saw a voter turnout of over 53%. 1 seat each of Manipur and Tripura recorded over 54% voter turnout and one seat of Jammu and Kashmir recorded a voter turnout of nearly 43%.
Disclaimer: This press release is sourced from News On AIR, Prasar Bharti and Press Information Bureau India (PIB).
