Voting for the marathon seven-phased Lok Sabha elections came to a close on Sunday, 19 May as nearly 64 percent turnout was recorded in the the last phase of polls in 59 seats, which also featured Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi.
In the 2014 general elections, the highest ever voter turnout of 66.40 per cent was recorded.
Incidents of violence in West Bengal and clashes in Punjab were reported during the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha polls on Sunday, 19 May, with 56.30 polling percentage being recorded till 5 pm in 59 seats.
The last phase of Lok Sabha elections, which will decide the fate of 918 candidates including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also saw EVM glitches and poll boycott at some booths.
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LS Polls: Violence in Bengal, Clashes in Punjab Reported; Over 56% Polling till 5 PM
Incidents of violence in West Bengal and clashes in Punjab were reported during the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha polls on Sunday, 19 May, with 56.30 polling percentage being recorded till 5 pm in 59 seats.
According to the Election Commission app, in Uttar Pradesh, 48.90 per cent voting was recorded till 5 pm in 13 Lok Sabha seats, officials said.
The turnout in Varanasi was 46.53 per cent, while in Gorakhpur, it was 48.17 per cent. The highest turnout was 53.30 per cent in Deoria, while Ballia reported the lowest turnout of 42.51 per cent, the Election Commission said.
Incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal where 67.14 per cent of over 1.49 crore electorate exercised their franchise till 5 pm in nine Lok Sabha seats.
Punjab saw a polling percentage of 55.44 per cent till 5 pm in 13 Lok Sabha seats. More than 50 per cent turnout was registered in lone Chandigarh Lok Sabha seat, EC app stated . Maximum polling percentage was witnessed at 62.67 in Sangrur and the lowest was in Hoshiarpur at 49.11.
In Himachal Pradesh, 58.10 per cent turnout was recorded till 5 pm in four Lok Sabha seats where five MLAs, including a state minister, are among the 45 candidates in the fray.
BJP Writes to Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal on Poll Violence
The BJP has written to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, alleging violence in 9 parliamentary constituencies of the state, ANI reported.
"We have filed 417 complaints to ECI, out of which 227 were resolved, a whooping number of 190 complaints are unresolved," ANI quoted the letter as stating.