Today marks the second last phase of the Lok Sabha elections where 57 constituencies across seven states and union territories have polled today. There are around 11 crore voters registered across 1.14 lakh polling stations.
States such as Bihar, Haryana, Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and UCT Delhi are polling today. The following comprises a list of states with their polling constituencies. (Key constituencies/seats are in bold)
1. Bihar: Valmiki Nagar, Paschim Champaran, Purvi Champaran, Sheohar, Vaishali, Gopalganj, Siwan, Maharajganj
2. Haryana: Ambala, Kurukshetra, Sirsa, Hisar, Karnal, Sonipat, Rohtak, Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, Gurgaon, Faridabad
3. Jharkhand: Giridih, Dhanbad, Ranchi, Jamshedpur
4. Odisha: Sambalpur, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Puri, Bhubaneswar
5. Uttar Pradesh: Sultanpur, Pratapgarh, Phulpur, Allahabad, Ambedkar Nagar, Shrawasti, Domariyaganj, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Lalganj, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Machhlishahr, Bhadohi
6. West Bengal: Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura, Bishnupur
7. Delhi: Chandni Chowk, North East Delhi, East Delhi, New Delhi, North West Delhi, West Delhi, South Delhi
Key Candidates in Phase 6
A significant number of 889 candidates are contesting in the penultimate phase of Lok Sabha Elections. Out of which the prominent candidates contending are Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan (Sambalpur) Rao Inderjit Singh (Gurugram) and Krishan Pal Gurjar (Faridabad), BJP’s Maneka Gandhi (Sultanpur), Sambit Patra (Puri), Manohar Lal Khattar (Karnal), Manoj Tiwari (North East Delhi), Abhijit Gangopadhyay (Tamluk) and Bansuri Swaraj (New Delhi), PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti (Anantnag-Rajouri) and Deepender Singh Hooda (Rohtak), Raj Babbar (Gurugram) and Kanhaiya Kumar of the Congress (North East Delhi).
Ahead of the sixth phase of Lok Sabha polls, the Association for Democratic Reforms and the National Election Watch collaborated to publish an analysis of the contesting candidates in the current phase.
Out of the 866 candidates analyzed, it found that 21% of them have declared criminal cases pending against them, 78% of which are serious in nature. The top 5 candidates with most criminal cases against them are Naveen Jindal(BJP), Jeewan Kumar (IND), Rudra Narayan Pany (BJP), Rambhual Nishad(SP) and Suresh Chandra(CPIM).
80% of the contesting candidates of major parties are crorepatis, from which 94% of BJP candidates have net worths in crores, highest of all parties. Naveen Jindal (BJP), Santrupt Misra (bjp), Sushil Gupta(AAP), Naina Singh Chautala (JJP) and Rao Inderjit Singh(BJP) have topped the list.
Another concerning factor is the lack of female candidates contesting. Out of the total 57 constituencies polling today, 12 of them have no female candidates.
Also Read: SC denied to direct ECI to upload voter turnout under Form 17C
Voter Turnout?
So far, the five phases of the Lok Sabha Elections have recorded an average voter turnout of 65.9% where in Phase 4 reported the highest turnout at 69.16%.
In the sixth phase as of 5:00 pm, an approximate voter turnout of 57.7% has been recorded across all 57 constituencies. Out of these, West Bengal has maintained its streak, since phase 1, to record a significantly high percentage of voter count with 78%. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir has a significantly lower turnout at 51.35%.
The Chief Justice of India, Justice DY Chandrachud also cast his vote today. In an interaction with the media he said, “Today by voting I have fulfilled my duties as a citizen of the country..”
With the last phase of the giant Lok Sabha Elections scheduled on June 1, the citizens/registered voters of the 8 polling states will determine the closing fate of the 2024 General Elections.
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