Billionaires and Bollywood stars lined up outside polling stations along with the common folks on Monday, 29 April, in Mumbai, which recorded 55.11 percent voting, an improvement over the 2014 elections figure of 51.59 percent.
Polling was held in 17 seats in Maharashtra, including all the six constituencies in Mumbai, in the fourth and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in the state.
Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha alleged that his 'indelible' ink vanished the day of voting after he cleaned his finger with nail polish remover. Jha voted in the South Mumbai constituency.
A galaxy of Bollywood stars, businesspeople and politicians came out to vote. Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Rekha, Paresh Rawal, Aamir Khan, Sonali Bhendre, Kareena Kapoor, filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, Chairperson of Reliance Group Anil Ambani were among the people who voted.
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55.97 Percent Polling in 4th Phase; 55.11 Percent in Mumbai
The overall percentage in the 17 seats when polling ended at 6 pm was 55.97 percent, compared to 55.72 percent in these seats during the 2014 elections, poll officials said.
For all the 48 seats in Maharashtra, the percentage this time was 60.68, almost similar to that in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, which saw 60.32 percent polling, they said.
Polling was held in 17 seats in Maharashtra, including all the six constituencies in Mumbai, in the fourth and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in the state.
The 17 seats were spread across Mumbai metropolitan region and parts of northern and western Maharashtra, having 3.11 crore voters and 323 candidates.
Mumbai Beats Pune in Voting
Mumbai may have registered an unimpressive voting percentage Monday, but its residents can take solace from at least one thing — they outdid Pune.
Against 49.84 percent turnout in Pune on 23 April, Mumbai registered a marginally better 51.11 percent voting Monday.
The rivalry between Mumbai, the biggest city of Maharashtra, and Pune, the state's ‘cultural capital', is old.
"Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai" , a hit Marathi rom-com with two sequels, exploits popular tropes about cultural differences between the two cities.
Sakhi Booths, Ramp Facilities Garner Praise
Actor Anushka Sharma, who cast her vote in an all-women "sakhi" polling booth in Versova, part of the Mumbai North West parliamentary constituency, was pleasantly surprised to get a kokam sharbat and a sanitary napkin packet.
As part of an Election Commission initiative to encourage women voters and honour women power, "sakhi" polling booths, staffed entirely by women officials, have been set up in which women voters are given a sanitary napkin packet and kokam juice post voting, an official said.
Congress' Deora Thanks EC, Cops for Peaceful Mumbai LS Poll
Mumbai Congress president Milind Deora today congratulated the Election Commission of India for peacefully conducting elections in the metropolis.
In a statement, Deora, the Congress' Mumbai South Lok Sabha candidate, also appreciated the efforts of the Mumbai police and other security personnel deployed for poll duty.
"The voters are the real heroes of this election and I thank them for strengthening our democracy today. On behalf of the Mumbai Congress, I congratulate the Election Commission for peacefully conducting elections in Mumbai," he said.