The polling for Phase 3 of the Lok Sabha elections concluded on Tuesday with a voter turnout of approximately 61.16 per cent, according to the Election Commission data. While Assam recorded the maximum voter turnout of 75.01 per cent, Maharashtra witnessed the lowest voter turnout of 54.09 per cent.
While the voting remained largely peaceful across 11 states and Union Territories with sporadic incidents of violence recorded in West Bengal. The stakes being high for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which had won an overwhelming majority of these seats, including all in Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, in the last election.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah cast their votes in Ahmedabad.Clashes were reported in West Bengal’s Jangipur following a heated altercation between BJP candidate Dhananjay Ghosh and a local Trinamool Congress worker at a polling booth. The TMC accused the BJP candidate of trying to influence voters.
In the Uttar Malda constituency, unidentified men threw a crude bomb at a polling station in Ratua. No injuries were reported.
The NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) filed a complaint with the Election Commission, urging that passbooks of Pune District Central Co-Operative Bank and Baramati Co-Operative Bank should not be allowed for voter identification. The party claimed that the bank is run by leaders belonging to Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction and feared that there was a possibility of issuing fake passbooks.
The Election Commission has made adequate arrangements for the third phase of polls. A total of 17.24 crore voters are eligible to cast their franchise in this phase on 1.85 lakh polling stations. Baramati in Maharashtra, Gulbarga in Karnataka and Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh are among seats on which the contest is being closely watched by people.
Meanwhile, Prime Minster Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah cast their vote at booths in Ahmedabad city under the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat in Gujarat. Amidst fervent campaigns and spirited debates, the spotlight now once again turns to the ballot box, where citizens will cast their votes, determining the political landscape for years to com
