Assam Sees 80 pc Polling, Keralam 78.25 pc, Puducherry 90 pc Voting
In Assam, more than 2.5 crore electors are eligible to exercise their franchise for the 126-member legislative assembly. There are 722 candidates in the fray. Of 2,50,54,463 electors, 1,25,31,552 are male voters and 1,25,22,593 females
Guwahati, Puducherry, Thiruvananthapuram: Incidents of violence and allegations of bogus voting failed to dampen the spirit of voters in Assam, Kerala and Puducherry that saw substantially high voter turnout on Thursday during the ongoing assembly elections. Assam recorded about 86 per cent polling at the end of the day, Kerala registered 78.25% and breaking all records Puducherry saw nearly 90% voting.
Assam and Puducherry surpassed their highest-ever poll-participation. Previously, the highest poll-participation in Assam was 84.67% in 2016 assembly polls while for Puducherry it was 86.19% in 2011 assembly elections. Kerala had registered its highest overall turnout of 80.54 in 1987 while in 2021 assembly elections, polling percentage was 74.06.
Puducherry Chief Electoral Officer, P Jawahar said the polling percentage in the Union Territory is the highest since 1964 when the first assembly election took place following the merger of the territory with India after its independence from France. In 1974, the polling percentage was 85.33, in 2006 it was 85.29 and in 2011 it was 85.57, the CEO said in a statement.
Voting also took place for bypolls for two seats in Karnataka and one each in Nagaland and Tripura. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) along with two Election Commissioners kept a close watch on the polling through live-webcasting which was ensured in 100% of the polling stations for the first time in Assam, Kerala and Puducherry.
In Assam around 30 people were injured and seven arrested in connection with poll-related violence where polling for 126 seats took place amid intense campaigning and aggressive posturing between the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma visited Kamakhya Temple before casting vote with his family. Mr Sarma, the BJP candidate from Jalukbari, is seeking re-election from the seat for the third consecutive term as BJP candidate. Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, who is leading the alliance of opposition political parties, exercised his franchise in Jorhat.
In Assam, violent clash was reported from a polling station in Patharkandi constituency, halting voting for nearly two hours. Authorities accused Congress candidate Kartik Chandra Sinha of being involved in the incident. Congress candidate from Nazira, Debabrata Saikia alleged irregularities and accused the Election Commission of biased conduct. Many voters alleged that their votes were already cast in Polling Station No. 30 in Geetanagar under the New Guwahati constituency when they reached to exercise their franchise.
In Kerala, polling across 140 constituencies was largely peaceful, though minor clashes were reported at several polling booths after voting began in the morning. Officials said most of the clashes took place due to heavy rush, with people fighting over breaking the queue. However, at some polling booths, supporters of the ruling and opposition parties also clashed. Minor clashes and protests over alleged bogus voting were reported from various parts of Kerala.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan cast his vote along with his family at a polling station in Kannur district. Describing the election as decisive, he said it would determine the direction of Kerala's development. From the BJP-led NDA camp, Union Minister Suresh Gopi reached a polling booth early in the morning and waited in the queue along with other voters before casting his ballot. BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar expressed confidence that voters would support the party's push for development and governance. Malayalam actors including Mammootty and Mohanlal cast their votes in Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram, respectively.
Barring minor incidents, polling in Puducherry was peaceful. Despite the scorching sun, people gathered in large numbers in the polling stations from 7 am onwards when voting began across the 30 Assembly constituencies. Tension prevailed briefly at Tirukanoor village, under the Mannadipet Assembly Constituency, when groups of BJP and Congress workers clashed at a polling booth, and police baton-charged and dispersed them.
