India General Elections 2024 updates | Highlights from Phase 5 of voting

Actor Kangana Ranaut, BJP candidate from the Mandi parliamentary constituency, was shown black flags by local people and Congress workers at Kaza in Lahaul and Spiti.

The Himachal Pradesh BJP filed a complaint with the state chief electoral officer (CEO) demanding transfer of election officials and an investigation into the incident as both the BJP and the Congress were given permission to hold rallies adjacent to each other.

The Congress workers raised anti-Kangana slogans - “Kangana, go back, Kangana Vangana nahi chalegi”. They were apparently enraged over her remarks on Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama in April last year.

In a complaint filed with the Himachal Pradesh CEO, BJP state office secretary Parmod Kumar Thakur said the Congress workers allegedly tried to illegally restrain the political procession and even pelted stones and demanded an investigation into the incident.

“The district administration granted permission for organising a political meeting to the Congress adjacent to the place already scheduled to hold a political meeting of the BJP at Kaza under undue influence of the state government in utter violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC)“, he said.

- PTI

Andhra Pradesh police have arrested 124 accused persons out of the 1,370 allegedly involved in the recent election day and post-poll violence in the three districts of Palnadu, Anantapur and Tirupati, an official on Monday.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Inspector General of police Vineet Brijlal, formed to investigate the riots submitted a 150-page report to DGP Harish Kumar Gupta, according to which 1,152 accused persons were yet to be arrested.

“A total of 33 cases were identified...SIT sub-teams camped at the districts concerned and thoroughly reviewed the cases identified regarding investigation done so far,” Brijlal said in a press release.

- PTI

Odisha recorded 60.55% voter turnout till 5 pm in the polling for five Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 Assembly segments, officials said.

Voting started at 7 am in Aska, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Bolangir and Sundergarh parliamentary constituencies along with 35 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats.

Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha.

Voting in a booth under Kantamal assembly segment under Kandhamal Parliamentary Constituency was stopped after some people created a disturbance, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Odisha, N B Dhal, said.

- PTI

An average voter turnout of 48.66% was recorded till 5 p.m. on Monday in 13 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra, including half a dozen in Mumbai, in the fifth and final phase of elections in the state as Bollywood actors, corporate leaders and prominent politicians came out to exercise their franchise, as per poll officials.

With an hour to go for formal end of the polling time, the state Chief Electoral Officer’s office clarified any voter who is at the queue at 6 pm is entitled to vote.

Lok Sabha Elections 2024: From Shah Rukh Khan to Deepika Padukone, Bollywood stars cast their vote

Other stars from the Hindi film fraternity like Aamir Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt and veteran Dharmendra were seen at the polling booths

“The polling station will continue to function till all voters who were at the queue at 6 pm cast their vote,” it maintained.

Of the 13 constituencies spread across the Mumbai region and North Maharashtra, the highest turnout was in Dindori in Nashik district at 57.06%, while the lowest was in Kalyan in Thane district at 41.70%.

A voter turnout of 73% was recorded till 5 p.m. in seven Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal that went to polls in the fifth phase, an Election Commission official said.

The Arambag parliamentary constituency registered the highest polling at 76.90%, followed by Bangaon at 75.73%, Uluberia at 74.50%, Hooghly at 74.17%, Sreerampur at 71.18%, Howrah and Barrackpore at 68.84% each, he said.

Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.

Till 4.30 pm, the state CEO’s office received 1,913 complaints in connection with the ongoing polling, he said.

Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency recorded a voter turnout of more than 45% till 3 pm on Monday, already registering its highest polling percentage in the last 40 years.

The overall polling percentage of 45.22 this time is second only to the 58.84% turnout the constituency saw in 1984. Baramulla recorded a turnout of 34.89% in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

“The Baramulla parliamentary constituency has recorded 45.22% voting in all its polling stations up to 3,” the chief election officer of J&K said in a statement.

- PTI

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee’s youngest brother Babun Banerjee on Monday could not cast his vote after his name was not found in the voters’ list, an election official said.

Babun, who is a voter of Howrah town, went to cast his vote at a polling booth when it was discovered that his name was not on the list.

“The Election Commission of India is looking into the whole matter. Only it can explain why this happened,” Trinamool Congress spokesperson Shantanu Sen said.

When contacted by PTI, Babun declined to take questions on the matter.

Babun had expressed his displeasure after TMC renominated sitting MP Prasun Banerjee for the Howrah Lok Sabha seat in March. Mamata Banerjee had then said she decided to disown him and cut off relationship with him.

- PTI

The West Delhi constituency recorded the highest number of voters availing of the home voting facility in the national capital to exercise their franchise in the Lok Sabha elections, according to data released by the poll body.

A total of 969 people above the age of 85 and 179 persons with disabilities (PWDs) exercised their franchise via home voting in the West Delhi constituency, the data shows.

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the Election Commission, while announcing the Lok Sabha polls schedule, unveiled the ‘Vote From Home’ scheme, designed to facilitate the participation of citizens aged 85 and above and individuals with more than 40 per cent disabilities in the elections.

In the New Delhi constituency, 909 voters aged 85 and above and 70 from the PWD category cast their votes from home.

- PTI

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray alleged that polling officials were delaying voting process in many centres at behest of the government. He asked the voters to stay put at polling centres till morning if needed and leave only after exercising their franchise.

- Abhinay Deshpande

Marked by long queues and voters enthusiasm, the ongoing poll process in J&K’s Baramulla saw 45.22% polling by 3 p.m. and the Ladakh Lok Sabha seat crossed 52.02% polling by 1 p.m.

- Peerzada Ashiq

Over 47% voter turnout was recorded till 3 pm in 49 constituencies in six states and two Union Territories in the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections amid sporadic incidents of violence in West Bengal and poll boycott in a village of Uttar Pradesh.

EVM glitches were also reported in some booths of Odisha and West Bengal.

While Maharashtra recorded the lowest voter turnout till 3 pm with 38.77% voters exercising their franchise, West Bengal recorded the highest voting percentage of 62.72.

Among other states Bihar recorded 45.33% turnout, Jammu and Kashmir 44.90%, Jharkhand 53.90%, Odisha 48.95%, Uttar Pradesh 47.55% and Ladakh 61.26%.

“The police have registered a case against spiritual leader Shantigiri Maharaj, an independent candidate, for allegedly violating the Model Code of Conduct after he garlanded the EVM enclosure while exercising his franchise in the Nashik Lok Sabha constituency,” an official said.

“As per a complaint lodged by a polling official, the spiritual leader arrived at the polling booth at MVP College in Trimbakeshwar to cast his vote and was accompanied by 25 to 30 people,” the official said. “Shantigiri Maharaj removed a garland from his neck and put it on the EVM enclosure before casting his vote,” he said.

“A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Representative of the People Act 1951 at Trimbakeshwar police station,” the official said. - PTI

“A 62-year-old man died of suspected cardiac arrest outside a polling booth in Jharkhand’s Ramgarh district,” an official said.

The incident happened outside booth 193 at the Government Upgraded High School in Chitarpur block’s Bhuchungdih village in Hazaribag Lok Sabha constituency. “Akhtar Hussain collapsed on the road and died,” he said.

“A detailed report in this connection has been sought from local authorities,” Deputy Commissioner Chandan Kumar said. BDO Gyan Shankar Ekka said Hussain lived some 500 metres from the polling booth. “He died of possible cardiac arrest,” Mr. Ekka said. - PTI

People wait in a long queue outside a polling station below the Ghatkopar Mankhurd Link Road bridge, in North East Mumbai. Photo: Emmanual Yogini

Jammu & Kashmir’s Baramulla constituency has recorded 35.01% voter turnout till 1 p.m., with female voters outnumbering male voters on many segments.

“More than 52% polling was recorded in Ladakh till 1 p.m. on May 20 in the election to decide the fate of three candidates in the fray for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Union Territory,” polling officials said.

They said polling was going on peacefully across the constituency spread over the two districts of Leh and Kargil. Voting began at 7 a.m. The officials said 52.02% of voters cast their ballots in the constituency in the first six hours of polling with Kargil district recording a turnout of 57.69% and Leh 45.90%.

Ladakh, the largest constituency in the country in terms of area, witnessed 71.05% turnout in the 2019 general election. This is the first major electoral battle in the region after it was carved out of Jammu and Kashmir and granted Union Territory status in 2019. - PTI

As voting continues in the six Lok Sabha constituencies of Mumbai, the city is witnessing a low voter turnout with 27.28% record till 1 p.m. This even as several Bollywood celebrities and industrialists turned up at their designated polling booths to exercise their franchise and make an appeal to the city’s residents to vote in large numbers. 

As per the Election Commission of India, the turnout recorded at 1 p.m. for the six constituencies in the city were: Mumbai North 26.78%, Mumbai North Central 28.05%, Mumbai North East 28.82%, Mumbai North West 28.41%, Mumbai South 24.46% and Mumbai South Central 27.21%.

Notable individuals such as Union Minister Piyush Goyal, industrialist Anil Ambani and actor Akshay Kumar cast their votes in the early hours of voting. Later, luminaries from the film industry, including Paresh Rawal, Shahid Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Rajkumar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Manoj Bajpayee were also spotted at various polling booths across Mumbai.

Legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and Star India batter Suryakumar Yadav turned to cast their votes. Apart from that parents-to-be Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh also stepped out to cast their votes. - ANI

Shiv Sena leader Milind Deora cast his vote at a polling booth in Mumbai on May 20 and said, “This is the first time in 45 years that our family is not contesting the elections from the South Mumbai seat. In a way, it’s a bit of a strange feeling.”

He further urged all the voters to vote to make the democratic system of the country robust.”I appeal to the voters that India is the largest democracy in the world and everyone is proud of it. To make this democracy stronger, there is only one process that comes before us once every five years and that opportunity is voting,” he emphasised. - ANI

“Nearly 42% voter turnout was recorded till 1 p.m. in three Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand,” election officials said.

Voting commenced at 7 a.m. in Chatra, Hazaribag, and Koderma constituencies as part of the second phase of elections in the eastern State and will continue until 5 p.m. Till 1 p.m., Chatra recorded a voter turnout of 42.76%, Hazaribag 40.16% and Koderma 42.73%. “The overall turnout was 41.89%,” officials said. This phase involves 22 candidates in Chatra, 15 in Koderma, and 17 in Hazaribag.

In Hazaribag, villagers boycotted polling at booths 183 and 184 in Kusumba village under Katkamdag due to unmet demands for a flyover. About 58.34 lakh voters, including 28.35 lakh women, are eligible to vote in these constituencies. - PTI

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said a Cabinet reshuffle is not on the cards. He also predicted that the Congress will get somewhere between 15 and 20 seats out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in the State.

The Chief Minister also ruled out discontinuing the five guarantees implemented by the State government. “We are not thinking of any Cabinet reshuffle after the Lok Sabha elections,” Mr. Siddaramaiah said during the ‘Meet the Press’, organised by the Press Club of Bangalore. “For no reason we will discontinue any guarantee schemes,” he said. - PTI

“Around 34.62% of more than 95.11 lakh voters in five Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar have exercised their franchise till 1 p.m. on May 20,” officials said.

“The polling began at 7 a.m. in Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, Saran and Hajipur Lok Sabha constituencies and will continue till 6 p.m.,” a senior official at the CEO’s office said. More than 95 lakh voters in these five seats will decide the electoral fate of 80 candidates at 9,436 polling stations.

More than 37.80% of voters have exercised their franchise in Muzaffarpur, 35.01% in Sitamarhi, 33.67% in Saran, 33.57% in Madhubani and 33.10 in Hajipur till 1 p.m. Of the total voters, 45.11 lakh are women, 21 lakh are under 29 years of age and 1.26 lakh are in the age group of 18-19 years.

Talking to reporters in Patna, Bihar BJP president and Deputy Chief Minister Samra Chaudhary said, “Voting is going very smoothly in all five constituencies in the State today.” Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai cast his votee at a polling booth in Hajipur Lok Sabha constituency. - PTI

“Odisha recorded around 35.31% voter turnout till 1 pm in the polling for five Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 Assembly segments on Monday,” officials said.

Voting started at 7 a.m. in Aska, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Bolangir and Sundergarh Parliamentary constituencies along with 35 Assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats. Police claimed that there was no report of any untoward incident in any polling booth.

However, some unidentified persons allegedly hacked an auto-rickshaw driver to death near Sarsara under Sadar police limits in Bargarh district. The deceased was carrying some voters to the polling booth. While the family members claimed it was a political murder, police say personal enmity is the reason behind the crime.

Chief Electoral Officer N. B. Dhal said polling was peaceful and there was no report of any untoward incident till 1 p.m. The CEO said 70 ballot units, 89 control units and 167 VVPATs have been replaced due to glitches.

Officials said of the five LS seats, the highest 38.18% polling was recorded in Bargarh Parliamentary seat followed by Sundergarh (36.32%), Kandhanmal (35.09%), Aska (34.38%) and Bolangir (32.82%). - PTI

Popular Hindi cinema stars Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Akshay Kumar, Farhan Akhtar and Tabu were among the celebrities who stepped out to exercise their right to vote for Lok Sabha Election 2024, in Mumbai on May 20.

While Ranveer and Deepika cast their votes at a polling booth in Bandra, Dhawan and Kapoor took to their social media accounts to encourage others to vote. Akshay Kumar, who voted for the first time since receiving Indian citizenship, was one of the early voters.

Photo Credit: PTI

“I want my India to be developed and strong and I’ve kept these things in my mind when I went to cast my vote, and all the Indians should think what is right for them and vote,” Akshay Kumar said after voting at a polling station in Juhu.

Akthar queued up at a polling station in Bandra West to cast his vote. Film-maker Zoya Aktar and mother Honey Irani also accompanied Farhan to cast their votes. Actor Hema Malini, who’s BJP candidate from Mathura Lok Sabha constituency, said she is hopeful that voters’ turnout will be good. - PTI

Former MLC and working president of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee, from Mira Road and Bhayandar, Thane constituency, Muzaffar Hussain said, “Without verifying and checking, the Election Commission (EC) of India has deliberately deleted names of many voters from the list. These are the same people who had voted in 2019 election and elections before that. They have been the residents of Mira Road and Bhayander for years. They have never left their homes. The EC has targeted only a specific community in their list where they fear the votes would not favour the ruling government in power.”

“When we questioned the Election Commission on this, in their defence they said, they publish the voters list before the election. But this list is not available online that is accessible to anyone, in fact the list is available at the respective tahsildar’s office. How could one expect people to go to the tahsildar’s office and check whether their names are there or not in the list. Note that the EC do not publish a separate list for the deleted names. Moreover, the election process is so slow and unorganised that voters are standing in queue for hours to cast their vote amidst this heatwave,” Mr. Hussain said.

Centenarian freedom fighter G. G. Parikh, who has been voting since India’s first general elections in 1951-52, exercised his franchise in the Mumbai South Lok Sabha seat, which went to polls in the fifth and final phase in Maharashtra on May 20.

Though the Election Commission of India (ECI) provided a home voting facility for senior citizens above 75, a wheelchair-borne Parikh (100) chose to visit the polling station at Girton High School in Grant Road.

With the help of social activists and his housekeeper, Parikh, popularly known as GG, was wheeled into the polling booth around 10.30 am. Parikh took part in the Indian freedom struggle and participated in the Samyukta Maharashtra movement and the Goa liberation movement. - PTI

In Mumbai city, free transportation arrangements have been made available by the district administration for the elderly and disabled voters. Under this initiative, ‘BEST’ bus services have provided 10 low-floor buses to transport elderly and the disabled voters to the polling centres, ensuring they exercise their voting rights.

Sachin Tendulkar and his son Arjun Tendulkar after casting their votes in Bandra, in Mumbai. Photo: Emmanual Yogini

Scattered incidents of violence marred the fifth phase of Lok Sabha polls in seven parliamentary constituencies in West Bengal on Monday, as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various parts of Barrackpore, Bongaon, and Arambagh seats.

Although the poll panel has claimed that the polling has been peaceful so far, it said it has received 1,036 complaints until 11 am from different political parties alleging EVM malfunctioning and agents being stopped from entering booths.

Clashes broke out between supporters of TMC and BJP in Khanakul area of Arambagh constituency as both parties clashed over stopping polling agents from entering the booths.

Two live crude bombs were also recovered from the area by security personnel.

-PTI

An approximate voter turnout of 23.66 % was recorded in the first four hours of polling in 49 constituencies in six States and two Union Territories amid reports of EVM glitches in some places and poll boycott in a village of Uttar Pradesh. 

While Maharashtra recorded the lowest voter turnout till 11 am with 15.93 % voters exercising their franchise, West Bengal recorded the highest voting percentage with 32.70 %.

Among other states Bihar recorded 21.11 cent turnout, Jammu and Kashmir 21.37 %, Jharkhand 26.18 %, Ladakh 27.87 %, Odisha 21.097 % and Uttar Pradesh 27.76 %.

In Uttar Pradesh, Amethi recorded a voter turnout of 27.20 % till 11 am, and Rae Bareli 28.10 %.

-PTI

Veteran actor Dharmendra, aged 88 and sporting a fedora in the Mumbai heat, posed for photographs after casting his vote in the Phase 5 of the Lok Sabha elections 2024.

Dharmendra’s wife, BJP MP Hema Malini, also arrived at the polling booth with daughter Esha Deol to fulfill their civic duty. Dharmendra told the press his sons Sunny and Bobby will also be coming out to vote.

Read the story here.

A voter turnout of 15.93 % was recorded till 11 am on Monday in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra as voting was underway for the fifth and final phase of general elections in the state, as per poll authorities.

Among the 13 constituencies, Bhiwandi recorded 14.79 % polling, Dhule 17.38 %, Dindori 19.50 %, Kalyan 11.46 %, Mumbai North 14.71 %, Mumbai North Central 15.73 %, Mumbai North East 17.01 %, Mumbai North West 17.53 %, Mumbai South 12.75 %, Mumbai South Central 16.69 %, Nashik 16.30 %, Palghar 18.60 % and Thane 14.86 %.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde voted along with his family members at a booth in Thane, which is his political turf.

-PTI

More than 21.30% of the 17.37 lakh electorate exercised their franchise in the first four hours of polling in the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, officials said here.

An official of the election department said polling was going on smoothly across the Lok Sabha constituency which comprises 18 assembly segments and is spread over four districts of Baramulla, Bandipora, Kupwara and Budgam.

Giving assembly segment-wise data of poll percentage, the officials said the Langate segment in Kupwara district recorded the highest turnout of 24.21% till 11 am.

Bandipora, Beerwah, Budgam, Gulmarg, Handwara, Karnah, Kupwara, Lolab, Pattan, Rafiabad, Sonawari, Trehgam, Uri and Wagoor-Kreeri segments recorded more than 20 per cent turnout while Baramulla and Gurez were below 20 per cent. Sopore recorded the lowest turnout of 11.75%.

-PTI

Odisha recorded around 21% voter turnout till 11 a.m. in the polling for five Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 Assembly segments on Monday, officials said.

Voting started at 7 a.m. in Aska, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Bolangir and Sundergarh parliamentary constituencies along with 35 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats.

Police said there was no report of any untoward incident in any polling booth.

-PTI

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, accompanied by his wife Savitri Singh, cast their votes on Monday in Lucknow during the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections. Mr. Singh, who is the sitting MP and BJP candidate from the Lucknow constituency, appealed to voters nationwide to exercise their vote.

“I want to appeal to all voters in Lucknow and across the country to definitely go and vote today, bringing all your family members with you. This is our appeal,” Mr. Singh stated while speaking to the media.

The election in Lucknow sees Mr. Singh facing off against Samajwadi Party candidate Ravidas Mehrotra. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has fielded Sarwar Malik.

-ANI

Exuding confidence in his son, Karan Singh’s victory from the Kaisarganj Lok Sabha seat and not being weighed down by the sexual harassment charges levelled against him by the women wrestlers, Brij Bhushan Singh said that his party will be getting more number of votes owing to those allegations.

“We will get more votes owing to those allegations,” Mr. Singh said speaking to reporters in Kaisarganj on Monday adding, “There is only one issue in Kaisarganj, that is Brij Bhushan Singh.”

-ANI

An approximate voter turnout of 10.28% was recorded in the first two hours of polling on Monday in 49 constituencies in six states and two Union Territories in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

While Maharashtra recorded the lowest voter turnout till 9 a.m. with 6.33% voters exercising their franchise, West Bengal recorded the highest voting percentage with 15.35%.

Among the other states Bihar recorded 8.86 per cent turnout, Jammu and Kashmir 7.63%, Jharkhand 11.68%, Ladakh 10.51%, Odisha 6.87% and Uttar Pradesh 12.89%.

-PTI

Odisha recorded around 6.99% voter turnout in the first two hours of polling in five Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 Assembly segments on Monday, officials said.

Voting started at 7 a.m. in Aska, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Bolangir and Sundergarh parliamentary constituencies along with 35 assembly segments within the jurisdiction of these Lok Sabha seats.

Police said there was no report of any untoward incident in any polling booths Odisha’s Chief Electoral Officer N.B. Dhal Monday said that the voting was underway in all the 9,162 polling stations across peacefully in five Parliamentary Constituencies and 35 assembly segments under their jurisdiction with some reports of EVM glitches.

Till 9 a.m. around 6.99% of the over 79.69 lakh voters have exercised their franchise, officials said.

-PTI

Former Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party MLA candidate from Rourkela Assembly Constituency, Dilip Ray, cast the first vote at the Sundargarh booth in Rourkela district of Odisha.

He also exuded confidence that the BJP will form government in the Centre and Odisha.

On casting the first vote from the booth, BJP MLA candidate Dilip Ray said, “In my homeland, I have always cast the first vote in this booth. Also, I urge all the voters to come out and cast their votes in large numbers. So far, wherever I have been, I have witnessed a queue of voters from 6:30 am, and I hope voter turnout will be higher this time as compared to the last elections.”

-ANI

Polling booths in many parts of Mumbai saw a good turnout, with prominent persons including industrialist Anil Ambani and actor Akshay Kumar exercising their franchise in the early hours of voting.

The early voters also included Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran, Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das, former Uttar Pradesh governor Ram Naik, actor Janhvi Kapoor, actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar and Marathi theatre actor Prashant Damle.

Voters queued up in large numbers at the polling booths before 7 a.m. to exercise their franchise for elections to the Lok Sabha constituencies in Mumbai.

-PTI

Re-election has been recommended to the Election Commission at a polling booth in Aliganj village under Etah district and is part of Farrukhabad Lok Sabha constituency after a video of a youth casting multiple votes went viral on social media platforms. The seat had gone to polls on May 13, 2024.

Suspension and departmental action on the polling party of that booth have been decided, as per Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa.

Following the incident, the youth was arrested and has been identified as Rajan Singh, a resident of the village of Khiriya Pamaran in Etah district.

-ANI

The Election Commission has removed a BSF personnel from poll duty in Uluberia Lok Sabha constituency following a complaint of molestation against him, an official said.

A woman lodged the molestation complaint at Uluberia Police Station on Sunday evening, he said.

“We have removed him from election duty. We are waiting for the police report. If found guilty, necessary action will be taken as per law,” the poll panel official told PTI.

The fate of five Union ministers, including Rajnath Singh and Smriti Irani, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will be decided during the fifth phase of elections covering 14 Lok Sabha constituencies in U.P.’

Read story here.

BJP MP and candidate from Hooghly, Locket Chatterjee said that while there are instances of threats at some places in her constituency, the overall situation is peaceful and everyone will be exercising their franchise.

“Everything is going on fine...There were instances of threatening at 2-3 places at a booth in Balagarh, Dhaniakhali. EVM machines are not working at a few locations but work is going on those,” Ms. Chatterjee said.

-ANI

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Watch | Is your State voting on May 20? Find out

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati cast her vote in Lucknow and urged all political parties to prioritise the issues of development and the welfare of the people while interacting with media.

She was among the first political leaders to cast her vote in Lucknow.

-ANI

The ongoing Lok Sabha election is beyond the half-way point, and while the central question of the polls remains the same — Prime Minister Narendra Modi and whether he gets a third term — there are three significant mini narratives within this meta narrative on which the election hinges, namely, women, the youth, and the Scheduled Castes (SCs).

Read the story by Nistula Hebbar here.

Voting began in the five Lok Sabha seats of Bihar, all currently held by the BJP-led NDA. Over 95 lakh voters will decide the fate of 80 candidates.

The seats going to polls in the fifth phase of Lok Sabha polls are Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, Saran and reserved constituency of Hajipur.

Hajipur has the highest number of 19.67 voters and the primary contest there is between NDA partner Chirag Paswan, whose late father Ram Vilas Paswan had won the seat eight times, and RJD’s Shiv Chandra Ram, a former MLA and ex-minister in the state.

Sitting MP Pashupati Kumar Paras, a former Union minister and estranged uncle of Paswan, has stayed out of the contest while pledging support to the NDA.

The adjoining seat of Saran is witnessing a high-profile fight between RJD debutant Rohini Acharya, daughter of party president Lalu Prasad, and former Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy, the sitting MP who has won the constituency for BJP several times.

In Muzaffarpur, sitting MP Ajay Nishad is contesting on a Congress ticket, having quit the BJP which refused to back him for a third consecutive term. The BJP has fielded Raj Bhushan Chaudhary, a political greenhorn who was the runner up in 2019 when he contested on the ticket of Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP). 

-PTI

Polling for five Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 assembly seats in Odisha began amid tight security on Monday, officials said.

Voting commenced at 7 am in Aska, Kandhamal, Bolangir, Bargarh, and Sundargarh parliamentary constituencies, along with 35 assembly segments within these Lok Sabha seats.

Approximately 79.69 lakh voters are eligible to cast their ballots at 9,162 booths located across 7,339 locations.

-PTI

Polling for the fifth phase of Lok Sabha polls commenced across seven parliamentary constituencies of West Bengal amid tight security on Monday, an official said.

Voting commenced in Bangaon (SC), Barrackpore, Howrah, Uluberia, Sreerampur, Hooghly, and Arambag (SC) Lok Sabha constituencies at 7 a.m. and will continue till 6 pm.

-PTI

More than 500 centenarians are among the 17.37 lakh voters eligible to exercise their franchise in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency, with political observers expecting a high turnout on the back of the huge crowds that thronged election rallies and roadshows.

The first major political battle post the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 will decide the fate of Omar Abdullah, the National Conference vice-president and a former chief minister of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state, and 21 others in the fray.

Fourteen Independent candidates -- two of whom are women -- are among the hopefuls from the north Kashmir seat, which has traditionally returned a higher turnout compared to areas in central and south Kashmir.

The constituency goes to the polls on Monday.

Abdullah faces the biggest challenge from separatist-turned-politician and former minister Sajad Lone, who heads the People’s Conference. The blazing campaign trail witnessed the rivals going full throttle against each other and even bringing in the BJP to target each other despite the saffron party not contesting from any of the three parliamentary seats of Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag-Rajouri in the Valley. - PTI

Voting for the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh covering 14 Lok Sabha constituencies, which will decide the fate of five Union ministers, including Rajnath Singh and Smriti Irani, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, began on Monday morning.

Voting will also take place for the assembly bypoll to Lucknow East assembly constituency.

The Election Commission said voting will be held from 7 am to 6 pm.

-PTI

Voting in three Jharkhand Lok Sabha constituencies — Chatra, Koderma and Hazaribag — and by-poll in Gandey assembly seat will take place on Monday amid tight security, officials said.

Over 58.22 lakh electors including 28.29 lakh female voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the three Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, while 3.15 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in Gandey by-poll, an election official said.

As many as 54 candidates are in the fray for polls in three Lok Sabha seats, while 11 candidates including Kalpana Soren, wife of jailed former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, are contesting in the Gandey assembly by-election, the official said. - PTI

Mr. Patnaik is contesting from two assembly segments – Hinjili under Aska Lok Sabha seat in Ganjam district and Kantabanji under Bolangir parliamentary constituency – around 400 km apart.

Apart from Mr. Patnaik, major contestants whose electoral fate would be decided on Monday include around half-a-dozen Odisha ministers, BJP’s sitting MPs Jual Oram and Sangeeta Singh Deo, BJD MP Achyut Samant and former Indian Hockey captain Dilip Tirkey.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, chief ministers of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and film actor Hema Malini have campaigned for BJP candidates, while Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi have canvassed for their party nominees.

BJD president Naveen Patnaik and his close aide V.K. Pandian have extensively campaigned across the five Lok Sabha and 35 assembly seats. - PTI

Tight security arrangements have been made, with the deployment of over 33,000 personnel, for elections to five Lok Sabha and 35 assembly constituencies in Odisha on Monday, officials said.

Over 70.69 lakh voters, including 40.33 lakh men, 39.35 lakh women and 851 transgender persons, are eligible to cast their votes at 9,162 polling stations in Aska, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Bolangir and Sundargarh Lok Sabha constituencies, and 35 assembly seats falling under these parliamentary constituencies, in the second phase of polls in the state.

A total of 40 candidates are in the fray for the five Lok Sabha seats, while 265 nominees, including Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, will try their luck in the 35 assembly segments. - PTI

Polling in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra, including six in Mumbai, will be held on Monday in the fifth and last phase of general elections in the state.

More than 2.46 crore persons are eligible to cast vote and decide the fate of 264 candidates in Mumbai North, Mumbai North Central, Mumbai North West, Mumbai North East, Mumbai South Central, Mumbai South, Thane, Kalyan, Bhiwandi, Palghar, Nashik, Dindori and Dhule seats.

Union ministers Piyush Goyal (Mumbai North), Bharati Pawar (Dindori) and Kapil Patil (Bhiwandi) are among the key nominees of the BJP, which has also fielded lawyer Ujjwal Nikam (Mumbai North Central).

Shiv Sena’s Shrikant Shinde (Kalyan) and city Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad (Mumbai North Central) are also in the fray.

Voting will be conducted from 7 am to 6 pm in 24,553 polling centres.

The main contest is between the ruling Mahayuti comprising the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP, and the opposition alliance of the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP).

Mumbai, Thane and Palghar where 10 of these 13 seats are located form a major part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, one of the most urbanised pockets in the country.

Altogether, 2,46,69,544 persons are eligible to cast vote, including 1,31,38,526 men, 1,15,28,278 women and 2,740 from the third gender. - PTI

A bevy of high-profile candidates, from ministers to actors, would test their luck in the hustings on Monday as seven Lok Sabha constituencies in the southern part of West Bengal go for polls in the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

A total of 1,25,23,702 voters – 63,51,320 men, 61,72,034 women and 348 third-genders – are eligible to exercise their franchise in 13,481 polling stations across the seven constituencies.

The EC has identified over 57 per cent of the polling booths as sensitive and decided to deploy over 60,000 central forces besides 29,172 state police personnel for this phase, according to an official.

Reopening of closed industries, poor health of jute mills and demand for jobs are the main demands of the electorate in Howrah, Hooghly, Serampore and Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituencies, situated on both sides of the banks of River Hooghly.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) is the bone of contention between the BJP and the TMC in the Bangladesh-bordering Bangaon constituency, where winning the hearts of the Matua community, many of whom migrated from the neighbouring country, holds the key to ensuring a victory in the polls.

Uluberia and Arambagh are the other two constituencies in Bengal which are going to polls on Monday.

With the elections having come down to the high-strung constituencies in south Bengal in the fifth phase, the Election Commission has declared over 57% of booths as sensitive in Monday’s polls, deploying the maximum number of security personnel among the first five phases to ensure peaceful polling. - PTI