Jaipur/Kanker/Bhuvneshwar/Patna/New Delhi/Lucknow: Moderate to high turnout was recorded on Monday in by-elections to the Mainpuri Lok Sabha seat and five assembly seats in as many states, while only around 34 per cent of electors cast their votes in Rampur assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh.
Mainpuri parliamentary constituency in UP, which fell vacant after the death of Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, registered 54.37 turnout while Khatauli Assembly segment in Muzaffarnagar recorded 56.46 polling, district officials said. Main rivals BJP and Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh accused each other of rigging and complained to Chief Electoral Officer Ajay Kumar Shukla.
The turnout was 76 per cent in Padampur in Odisha, nearly 70 per cent in Sardarshahar in Rajasthan, 64.86 per cent in Bhanupratappur in Chhattisgarh and around 58 per cent in Kurhani in Bihar and, with no major untoward incident reported.
Whereas in Odisha, more than 80 per cent of 2.57 lakh voters on Monday exercised their franchise till 6 pm in the bypoll to Odisha's Padampur assembly constituency amid tight security, an Election Commission official said. The voting, which began at 7 am, continued beyond the closure time of 4 pm as about 12,000 people were in queues to cast their votes.
By 6 pm, the number of voters waiting in 71 of the 319 polling stations dipped to 4,000, he said. "Voting in Padampur assembly segment was smooth and no untoward incident was reported. A record 80.5 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 6 pm, with 4,000 people still in the queues," Bargarh District Collector and District Election Officer Manisha Banerjee told reporters in Padampur.
Police teams responded to all the allegations and there was no incident of rigging or booth-capturing, she said. Odisha's Chief Electoral Officer S K Lohani said many polling parties have already returned to their destinations by evening and EVMs were being brought amid tight security.
Nearly 58 per cent voters in Bihar exercised their franchise on Monday in the by-poll to Kurhani assembly segment of Bihar, where Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) and the BJP have locked horns for the first time since their nasty break-up four months ago. Polling began on a brisk note at 7 am across all 320 booths, and by 1 pm, 37 per cent of 3.11 lakh voters had cast their votes.
The trend continued till 3 pm when the turnout stood at 48 per cent, though there was a slump in the final three hours. It rose to only 53 per cent till 5 pm, and by the end of polling an hour later, the figure stood at 57.90 per cent, Chief Electoral Officer H R Srinivas told reporters. He said the turnout for the constituency was significantly lower than the 64.19 per cent polling registered in 2020, when assembly elections took place in the state.
Subsequently, in Chhattisgarh, a voter turnout of 64.86 per cent was recorded on Monday in the bypoll to Bhanupratappur Assembly constituency in Chhattisgarh's Kanker district, a poll official here said. The figure is provisional as reports from some polling booths located in sensitive locations were yet to be received, he said.
Polling began at 7 am amid tight security and concluded at 3 pm. No untoward incident was reported in the constituency during the polling process which was by and large peaceful, the official said. Seven candidates contested the bypoll in the constituency, reserved for the Scheduled Tribes, though it was largely seen as a direct contest between the ruling Congress and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
While in Rajasthan, nearly 70 per cent voting was registered till 5.30 pm on Monday in the by-election to the Sardarshahar assembly seat in Rajasthan's Churu district, an official said. Voting started at 8 am and was scheduled to end at 5 pm. However, the authorities usually allow voters who reach the polling booth within the stipulated time to cast their votes.
According to the official, 69.91 per cent polling was registered till 5.30 pm. Final figures will be issued later. A total of 2,89,843 voters were eligible to exercise their franchise in the bypoll necessitated by the demise of Congress MLA Bhanwar Lal Sharma, who passed away on October 9 after prolonged illness.
Polling was held amid tight security arrangements across all 295 booths in the assembly segment. Wheelchairs were provided at each booth, the official said. (Agency inputs)
