NEW DELHI: As Phase 6 of Lok Sabha elections concluded on Saturday, the overall voter turnout was recorded at 59.46 per cent. In Phase 6, 58 seats went to polling across eight states and UTs. This is the lowest turnout till now among all six phases of Lok Sabha.
The highest turnout of 78.14 per cent was recorded in West Bengal.
As per the data available on the Election Commission voter turnout app, Bihar recorded 54.17 per cent voting and Uttar Pradesh recorded 54.03 per cent turnout.
New Delhi, where all seven seats voted in sing phase, also recorded low polling of only 55.58 per cent.
Haryana saw 58.92 per cent polling and Odisha recorded 60.04 per cent turnout. Jharkhand, where four seats were at stake, saw the voter turnout of 63.27 per cent. Polling in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag-Rajouri, which was adjourned in Phase 3, was recorded at 52.77 percent.
Before this, Phase 5 recorded the lowest turnout at 62.2 per cent. The turnout was recorded at 69.20 per cent in Phase 4, 65.70% in Phase 3, 66.70 per cent in Phase 2 and 66.10 per cent in Phase 1.
With the conclusion of Phase 6 of Lok Sabha elections, 486 out of 543 seats have voted now. The rest of the 51 seats will vote on June 1 in Phase 7 of the elections.
Voting in Phase 6 took place in Bihar (8 seats), Haryana (all 10 seats), Jammu and Kashmir (1 seat), Jharkhand (4 seats), Delhi (all 7 seats), Odisha (6 seats), Uttar Pradesh (14 seats), West Bengal (8 seats).
Over 11 lakh voters sealed the fate of 889 candidates in the second-last phase of Lok Sabha. Several key candidates including Bansuri Swaraj, Manoj Tiwari, Kanhaiya Kumar, Maneka Gandhi, Sambit Patra, Mehbooba Mufti and Raj Babbar were among the prominent candidates in fray.
'We could have been killed', alleges BJP worker A violent mob on Saturday allegedly attacked BJP candidate from West Bengal's Jhargram, Pranat Tudu, during polls for the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. The video of the incident showed a mob pelting stones and chasing Tudu and his convoy. Coming under attack, his security personnel swiftly reacted and safely evacuated him from the place. The BJP leader's car was also vandalised in the incident.
"We got information yesterday that BJP voters in Monglapota are not being allowed to vote. Due to this, we came to this area to check what was the problem. Here around 200 people attacked us with lathis, stones and some weapons." Tudu said.
"We could have been murdered if Central forces would not have been there...We did not get any protection from the local police...Didi doesn't want to impose CAA and make the country into Pakistan," he added.
'PDP polling agents are being targeted and arrested'President of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti, organised a demonstration outside an Anantnag district police station in Jammu and Kashmir. Mufti alleged that her party workers and polling agents were being detained by the authorities.
Furthermore, the PDP leader asserted that outgoing calls from her mobile phone had been blocked. In response to these allegations, the police stated that the individuals who had been detained were overground workers (OGWs). They maintained that the action was necessary to ensure the smooth and uninterrupted conduct of the electoral process.
"Our PDP polling agents are being targeted and arrested. We are asking the reason but they are not saying anything. If they are so afraid of me going to the Parliament, then the lieutenant governor should tell me not to fight elections," Mehbooba told reporters.
Delhi CM Kejriwal casts ballot, says people voting against dictatorshipDelhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, along with his wife Sunita Kejriwal, children, and father Govind Ram Kejriwal, cast their votes at a polling station in the Civil Lines area, which falls under the Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha constituency.
After casting his vote, Kejriwal remarked that citizens were turning out in significant numbers to vote against "dictatorship, price rise and unemployment."
"I understand, people in large numbers are voting against dictatorship, inflation and unemployment because they are highly troubled," he said.
On TMC's claim, EC explains why EVMs in Bengal had 'BJP tags'Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) levelled serious allegations against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claiming that five Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) at a polling station of Bankura's Raghunathpur had 'BJP tags' on them.
Sharing pictures of EVMs which had paper tags with BJP written on them, the TMC said on X, "Smt. @MamataOfficial has repeatedly flagged how @BJP4India was trying to rig votes by tampering with EVMs. And today, in Bankura's Raghunathpur, 5 EVMs were found with BJP tags on them."
'BJP polling agents carrying pamphlets inside booth,' says AAPAam Aadmi Party candidate, Somnath Bharti, accused the BJP polling agents, claiming that they are bringing candidate pamphlets inside the polling stations.
In a message posted on the social media platform X, Bharti expressed his disbelief, stating, "Shocked to report that every polling agent of the BJP is carrying candidate pamphlets inside the polling booth and shamelessly displaying the same fearing no one. Sharing video of what I saw inside booth no 134,135,137 and 138 of Assembly Constituency-43."
(With inputs from agencies)
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.