In the first phase of Lok Sabha elections on April 11 across 20 states and union territories saw a lower tournout. Meanwhile, Tripura and West Bengal recorded 81.8% and 80% voting respectively. Jammu recorded 72% polling while terrorism-affected Baramulla recorded 35% polling, which was not far from 38.5% clocked in 2014. Polling is now complete in 10 states and Union Territories. Also, assembly elections concluded in Andhra Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh, while Odisha had the first phase. This is the first Lok Sabha election where VVPATs were used on a 100% basis. Cash seizures so far are double those of the entire 2014 election at £60.7 million.
Clashes in Andhra Pradesh
Clashes between party workers and supporters were reported in Andhra Pradesh. There were around 15 cases of EVMs being damaged, including six in Andhra Pradesh, five in Arunachal Pradesh, two in Manipur and one each in Bihar and West Bengal. In Andhra Pradesh, Jana Sena candidate from Guntakal assembly constituency Madhusudan Gupta, agitated at an EVM not working, smashed it on the floor, leading to his arrest.
UP sees dip in polling percentage
Uttar Pradesh reported a dip in voter turnout. Eight Lok Sabha seats in Western UP recorded a 63.69 per cent turnout. Except for Gautam Buddh Nagar and Meerut, all of them reported lower polling percentage compared to 2014 elections. Three Union ministers - VK Singh from Ghaziabad, Satyapal Singh from Baghpat and Mahesh Sharma from Gautam Buddh Nagar - were in the fray in the first phase. Ghaziabad recorded a 55.78 per cent voter turnout this time - a marginal fall of 1.16 per cent compared to the 2014 polls.
Gautam Buddh Nagar registered a marginal high of 0.08 per cent - from 60.39 per cent in 2014 to 60.47 per cent this time. But seats like Kairana, Baghpat, Bijnor, and Saharanpur reported a low turnout. According to the Election Commission, Saharanpur recorded a 70.82 per cent, Kairana 67.46 per cent, Muzaffarnagar 68.22 per cent, Bijnor 64 per cent, Meerut 64.18 per cent and Baghpat 64.22 per cent voting.
Communally-sensitive Kairana witnessed a sharp fall in poll percentage - from 73.10 per cent in 2014 to 67.46 per cent this time. Saharanpur recorded a 3.44 per cent lower turnout, followed by Muzzafarnagar (-1.52 per cent), Baghpat (-2.53 per cent) and Bijnor (-3.88 per cent) compared to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Low turnout in Telangana
The case is not different for Telangana, too. In its first Lok Sabha elections after getting statehood, Telangana witnessed a major drop in voting turnout. Out of 17 seats, not a single constituency of Telangana could surpass 2014 turnout level of previous Andhra Pradesh. Hyderabad reported more than 8 per cent lower turnout with 44.75 per cent in this elections.
61.81 per cent in Maharashtra
Maharashtra reported 61.81 per cent voting in the seven Lok Sabha constituencies. Out of seven seats, four registered a lower turnout than the last Lok Sabha elections.
Higher voting in Andhra
Andhra Pradesh polling percentage is slightly higher than 2014 elections (77.80 per cent) with 79.64 per cent turnout. All five seats of Uttarakhand witnessed a slightly lower turnout than the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
Positive turnout in Bihar
However, Bihar registered a positive turnout on four Lok Sabha seats. Gaya recorded 56 per cent voting followed by Jamui standing at 55.3 per cent, Nawada at 52.5 per cent and Aurangabad at 53.6 per cent vote.
80 per cent voting in Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim
Voting in northeastern states has seen major turnout as usual, as Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim recorded around 80 per cent turnout. Arunachal east and west recorded 73.53 per cent and 62.36 per cent votes respectively. Meghalaya's Tura and Shillong posted higher turnout from the last election. Mizoram posted figures around 63 per cent.
A total of 91 Lok Sabha seats across 18 states and two Union territories have gone for polls in the first phase. Over 142 million voters have decided the fate of 1,279 candidates in the 91 constituencies.
