The fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 13 saw a voter turnout of 64.60% till 11 p.m. in 96 constituencies spread over 10 States and union territories. Incidents of violence and Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) malfunctioning were reported from some States.
A total of 1,717 candidates were in fray in this phase and 17.7 crore electors were eligible to exercise their franchise. With this phase, voting process in 23 States and union territories and 379 seats has been completed. The last three phases in the seven-phase general elections are scheduled to be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1 and counting on June 4.
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Of the 96 seats went to polls on Monday, the BJP had won 42 in 2019 while the YSR Congress had won 22 seats (in Andhra Pradesh), the Bharat Rashtra Samithi 9 (Telangana), the Congress 6, the Trinamool Congress 4, the TDP 3, the BJD, the AIMIM and Shiv Sena 2 each and the NCP, LJP, JD(U) and NC one each.
On Monday, the highest voting percentage of 76.89 was recorded in West Bengal, where Trinamool Congress (TMC) and BJP workers clashed in various parts of Birbhum and Bardhaman-Durgapur seats. Among the high-profile contests were in Krishnagar, where TMC’s Mahua Moitra took on the BJP’s Amrita Roy; in Baharampur, where the Congress’ Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury is fighting to retain his fiefdom amid a challenge by cricketer-turned politician and TMC’s Yusuf Pathan; and in Asansol, where the BJP’s S.S. Ahluwalia is contesting against former actor and TMC candidate Shatrughan Sinha.
Jammu and Kashmir, which is witnessing the first elections after the abrogation of Article 370, recorded the lowest turnout. The parliamentary constituency of Srinagar recorded a polling percentage of 38% till 11 p.m., the highest in many decades, the Election Commission (EC) said.
Lower in Maharashtra
The voting percentage in Maharashtra was also on the lower side at 59.33%.
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana saw voter turnouts of 68.87% and 62.64% respectively.
A case was registered against BJP candidate K. Madhavi Latha in Telangana’s Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat after she was purportedly seen in a video clip on social media asking burqa-clad women voters to show their faces to compare it with the photo identity cards. In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP and YSRCP traded charges and accused each other of resorting to violence, especially in Palnadu, Kadapa and Annamayya districts. YSRCP leader and Tenali MLA A. Shiva Kumar allegedly manhandled a voter in Tenali following an argument, police said, adding the voter also retaliated.
Congress leader and party candidate from Baharampur constituency Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury shows his finger marked with indelible ink after casting his vote for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, in Murshidabad district, on May 13, 2024. | Photo Credit: PTI
Bihar and Odisha saw turnouts of 57.06% and 65.77% respectively while in Jharkhand, the polling percentage was 64.59.
Assembly polls
Polling also took place for 175 and 28 out of 147 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha respectively.
Uttar Pradesh, which sends the highest number of MPs to Parliament, saw a turnout of 58.05%.
Meanwhile, in Kannauj, SP’s Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP of rigging the polls. Mr. Yadav claimed there were complaints of voting being disrupted in polling booths. Despite the “dishonesty” in Kannauj, the elections were going well and people were coming out to cast their votes, he said.
“As soon as I arrived, the goons ran away from the booths,” claimed the SP chief who reached Chhibramau in Kannauj district.
The SP chief also met police personnel with whom BJP workers allegedly misbehaved and enquired about their well-being.
In a post on X, the State unit of the BJP alleged that in the Bidhuna Assembly segment of Kannauj Lok Sabha seat, SP goons were not allowing those wanting to vote for the BJP and were indulging in booth capturing along with the presiding officer and police.
In Etah district, at Gautam Buddha Inter College in Aliganj tehsil, part of the Farrukhabad Lok Sabha constituency, District Magistrate Prem Ranjan Singh took an elderly woman voter on a wheelchair to cast her vote. Etah Senior Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar Singh was also present on the occasion.
