Zee Media Bureau, New Delhi :
Voting began Saturday for by-elections to 3 Lok Sabha and 33 Assembly constituencies spread across 10 states in an exercise seen as yet another major test of Narendra Modi government’s popularity since it assumed power in May.
The three Lok Sabha bypolls are in Vadodara (Gujarat), Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh) and Medak (Telangana) while 11 Assembly constituencies are in UP, nine in Gujarat, four in Rajasthan, two in West Bengal, five in Northeastern states and one each in Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh.
Counting of votes is scheduled for September 16.
About 50 percent electorate on Saturday exercised their franchise in bypolls to 11 Assembly seats and one Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh till 5 pm.
Around 53.2 percent votes were polled in Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat where Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his MP wife Dimple Yadav cast their votes, while 49.78 percent votes were polled in 11 Assembly seats, an official statement issued here said.
Among the Assembly constituencies, Thakurdwara in Moradabad and Nighasan in Lakhimpur witnessed brisk polling with 65 and 60 per cent turn out respectively, but it was tardy in Noida where only 31 per cent votes were polled followed by 32 percent for Lucknow east seat.
Security personnel, including those of the Central forces, have been deployed in constituencies along with micro- observers to ensure free and fair elections, according to the election office.
Tight security arrangements were made at all the polling centres even as video recording and photography were also done.
The Assembly seats where bypolls are being held include Saharanpur city, Bijnor, Thakurdwara, Noida, Nighasan Lucknow east, Hamirpur, Charkhari, Sirathu, Balha and Rohania.
By-elections are also being held in Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat, which was vacated by SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav. Eleven Assembly seats fell vacant after 10 BJP MLAs and one of its ally, Apna Dal, were elected to the Lok Sabha. Arrangement of web casting was also made at 176 sensitive polling stations.
While BSP is not contesting the bypoll, Congress and SP have fielded candidates on all 11 Assembly seats, whereas BJP is contesting on 10 and its ally Apna Dal on one.
In Mainpuri, BSP and Congress have not fielded their candidates. Here the contest is between Mulayam’s kin Tej Pratap Singh and BJP’s Shiv Singh Shakya.
About 50 percent polling was registered in Rohaniya Assembly seat, which falls under the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi.
By-election for Manu (ST) assembly seat in Tripura passed off peacefully on Saturday with record heavy turnout.
Joint Chief Electoral Officer(JCEO) Debasish Modak said “Though the exact figure is yet to be available, roughly over 87% voters exercised their franchise peacefully.
“People stood in long and serpentine queues from the morning, but not a single case of violence was recorded from any part of the constituency,” Modak told PTI.
The seat fell vacant after former minister Jitendra Chowdhury was elected to the Lok Sabha.
Strict security measures were taken and the Indo-Bangla border was sealed for peaceful polls, Tripura Chief Electoral Officer, Ashutosh Jindal said.
Central paramilitary forces including CRPF were patrolling in the constituency, while BSF was put on maximum alert, he said.
He said a total 46 polling stations were set up, 230 polling personnel and 38 micro observers were appointed for electioneering.
38,843 voters including 18,929 female voters were eligible to exercise their franchise.
Six candidates are in the fray for the seat but the main contest would be between ruling CPI-M candidate Prabhat Chowdhury and opposition Congress nominee Mailafru Mog.
BJP fielded Nirmal Kumar Tripura and TMC fielded Angthai Mog as their candidates. The rest two are independents.
Around 40 per cent voter turnout was reported till 3 PM in Gujarat, where bypolls are being held yesterday in one Lok Sabha constituency, vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and nine Assembly seats.
After a slow start, polling picked up some steam as the day progressed.
“Gujarat has recorded 39.50 per cent voter turnout till 3 PM,” a statement from the Election Commission said.
Vadodara Lok Sabha seat, vacated by Modi who retained Varanasi, recorded 33.41 per cent polling till 3 PM.
Limkheda Assembly constituency, which falls under the tribal district of Dahod, witnessed highest turnout of 58.23 per cent. The high-profile Maninagar seat in Ahmedabad, represented by Modi when he was Chief Minister, registered the lowest polling at 27.08 per cent.
The turnout in other Assembly seats was: Deesa (51.29%), Tankara (51.49%), Khambhalia (44.68%), Mangrol (46.06%), Anand (46.73%), Matar (40.78%) and Talaja (39.27%).
The polling day also witnessed some controversies as complaints of poll code violation were filed against some of the Congress candidates.
BJP has filed complaints with EC against Congress candidates Jatin Kella (Maninagar) and Kanti Sodha (Anand) for allegedly violating poll code by wearing scarfs with Congress’ election symbol on them when they went to cast their votes.
BJP has sought legal action against both candidates, the party’s state unit spokesperson Harshad Patel said.
Congress candidate from Vadodara Narendra Ravat sparked a controversy by clicking a selfie outside a polling booth, where he cast his vote, displaying the party symbol. He took the picture of his ink-marked finger.
The Assembly bye-elections were necessitated due to resignation of sitting BJP MLAs from their respective constituencies after they won the Lok Sabha polls.
Over 30 percent polling was reported till noon in Medak parliamentary constituency in Telangana where by-election is being held on Saturday.
In Nandigama assembly segment in Andhra Pradesh too, over 30 percent polling was reported.
Telangana minister T Harish Rao, Assembly Deputy Speaker Padma Devender Reddy, the contesting candidates K Prabhakar Reddy (TRS), T Jayaprakash Reddy (BJP) and V Sunita Laxma Reddy (Congress) were among the prominent persons who exercised their franchise in Medak.
Villagers of Gangapur boycotted the by-poll protesting the non-setting up of a polling booth in their village.
Similarly, in Peddapur under Veldurthi mandal too villagers boycotted the election protesting lack of proper roads to their village and neglect in undertaking other development works.
Polling was peaceful Saturday in West Bengal’s two assembly constituencies.
“9.07 percent polling was reported from Chowringhee and 20.5 percent from Basirhat (South) till 9 am,” an Election Commission official told IANS.
Chowringhee in Kolkata has gone to the hustings prematurely following the resignation of Trinamool Congress legislator Sikha Mitra, who won the election in 2011 but has now quit the party. In the assembly polls three years back, Trinamool had then fought jointly with the Congress.
The 200,256 electors spread across 222 polling stations have to choose from nine candidates – Trinamool’s Nayna Bandyopadhyay, BJP’s Ritesh Tiwari, Congress’ Santosh K. Pathak, CPI-M’s Faiyaz Ahmad Khan and five independents.
Half the electorate on Saturday turned out for the bye-election to Antagarh Assembly constituency in the Naxal-affected Kanker district of Chhattisgarh.
Polling was peaceful. “49.86 per cent polling was recorded in this seat, reserved for tribals,” Joint Chief Electoral Officer DD Singh told PTI.
The polling was held from 7 AM to 3 PM, he said, adding that exact voting figure would be known once officials returned to the district headquarters.
Despite Naxal threats, around 77 per cent of the voters had exercised the franchise in the constituency during last year’s Assembly elections.
As many as 202 polling stations, including 190 ‘hyper- sensitive’, had been set up. The constituency has 1,51,894 registered voters. Around 10,000 security personnel had been deployed.
An encounter took place in Edenga village forest under Amabeda police station limits yesterday, after Naxals carried out an IED blast targeting the special task force conducting cordon-off operation. It was followed by firing, but when jawans retaliated, the ultras fled, Kanker Superintendent of Police RN Dash said. Nobody was injured in the incident.
Though fourteen candidates had filed nominations, after scrutiny and withdrawals only two – Bhojraj Naag of BJP and Rupdhar Pudo of Ambedkarite Party of India-were left.
The bye-election was necessitated after sitting BJP MLA Vikram Usendi was elected from Kanker Lok Sabha constituency.
Congress had declared Manturam Pawar as its candidate, but he surprisingly pulled out a day before the deadline. He was expelled from the party subsequently.
Counting will be held on September 20.
The voter turnout was lukewarm during the morning hours in the bypolls for four assembly constituencies in Rajasthan.
“The polling has been peaceful so far and is expected to pick up in the afternoon. As per tentative information, over 14.80 percent of voters had cast their votes till 9.30 a.m.,” an election department official told IANS.
In 2013 assembly elections, the state had recorded a high voter turnout of over 75.67 percent.
“The voting began at 7 a.m. at over 961 polling stations spread in these four constituencies. We have made elaborate security arrangements for the peaceful polls,” an election official said.
The byelections were necessitated as BJP legislators Sanwar Lal Jat from Nasirabad, Om Birla from Kota South, Santosh Ahlawat from Surajgarh, and Bahadur Singh Koli from Weir got elected to the Lok Sabha.
ltogether 47 per cent polling was recorded till 1 PM in the bye-election to three Assam Assembly constituencies of Silchar, Lakhipur and Jamunamukh yesterday to decide the fate of 25 contestants, Election Office said.
Polling began peacefully at 7 AM in the three constituencies where 5,09,689 voters, including 2,44,543 women, are expected to exercise their franchise in 588 polling stations till the closing time of voting at 5 PM, it said.
Both constituencies 9-Silchar and 90-Jamunamukh recorded 47 per cent polling each, while 13-Lakhipur seat registered 54 per cent voting.
