Voting for the fourth phase of Uttar Pradesh (UP) Assembly elections ended at 6 pm on Wednesday, 23 February with a 57.45 percent voter turnout recorded till 5:00 pm. Counting of the votes will be done on 10 March.
Polling was underway in several key constituencies, including Lucknow, with many high-profile leaders including Union Minister Rajnath Singh and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati casting their votes in the capital city.
Minister of State Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni cast his vote in a polling booth in Banbirpur of Lakhimpur Kheri. Teni's son, Ashish Mishra, is the prime accused in the murder of four farmers, who were crushed under one of his cars.
Asha Singh, Congress candidate and the mother of the girl who was allegedly raped by former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, also cast her vote in Unnao.
Polling in this phase, which includes the five prime seats in the capital city of Lucknow, spans over nine districts and 59 constituencies
The voters from following districts will cast their vote on Wednesday: Lakhimpur Kheri, Pilibhit, Sitapur, Hardoi, Unnao, Lucknow, Rae Bareli, Banda, and Fatehpur. These districts cover 16 reserved constituencies
The BJP and its ally Apna Dal (Sonelal) had won 52 out of the 59 seats voting in this phase in 2017, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) had won four
Seven out of nine districts going to the polls are in the Awadh region, while Pilibhit is in Rohilkhand and Banda in Bundelkhand
PM Modi Slams Rivals in UP Rallies
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hit out at rivals during his rallies in Baranki and Ayodhya districts, saying that they only care about "vote bank" politics and turn a blind eye to the problems of Muslim women suffering due to triple talaq.
PM Modi took a jab at rivals for claiming that they can understand people's pain more than those who have no family and said that UP and the entire country is family.
57.45% voter turnout till 5 pm
A 57.45 percent voter turnout has been recorded till 5:00 pm as voting is underway for the fourth phase of the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Assembly elections.
Here's the district-wise turnout:
Banda: 57.50%
Fatehpur: 57.02%
Hardoi: 55.29%
Kheri: 62.42%
Lucknow: 55.08%
Pilibhit: 61.33%
Rae Bareli: 58.40%
Sitapur: 58.39%
Unnao: 54.05%
Mayawati 'Praises' Amit Shah Amid Polls
Former Chief Minister Mayawati on Wednesday reacted to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's positive assessment on the leader's campaign, saying that it was his "badappan (magnanimity) that he has acknowledged the truth."
"But I also want to tell him - in the three phases that have taken place in UP, the BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party) has not just received Dalit and Muslim votes but we are also getting upper caste and backward caste votes. I want to tell him that," she added.
49.89% Turnout Till 3:00 pm
A 49.89 percent voter turnout has been recorded till 3:00 pm as voting is underway for the fourth phase of the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Assembly elections.
Here's the district-wise turnout:
Banda: 50.07%
Fatehpur: 52.51%
Hardoi: 46.44%
Kheri: 52.99%
Lucknow: 47.83%
Pilibhit: 54.81%
Rae Bareli: 50.83%
Sitapur: 50.26%
Unnao: 47.31%