Jharkhand records 68.82 pc voter turnout in 3 Lok Sabha seats

    Ranchi, Jun 1 (PTI) A voter turnout of 68.82 per cent was recorded in three Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand, where voting took place in the seventh and final phase on Saturday, officials said.
    Polling began at 7 am in Dumka, Rajmahal and Godda, and continued till 5 pm.
    "The voting remained peaceful across three Lok Sabha constituencies, excluding some cases of MCC (model code of conduct) violations. Three cases of MCC violation were reported and FIR was lodged in two cases," Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) K Ravi Kumar said.
    Jharkhand police spokesperson and IG Operations, Amol V Homkar said no untoward incident was reported from any place. "Out of 6,258 booths, 130 booths were identified where there were Naxal issues in past. These booths registered peaceful polling," he said. Homakr said around 40,000 additional security forces were deployed in the phase.
    The Dumka seat registered the highest polling at 71.07 per cent, followed by Rajmahal (68.35 per cent) and Godda (67.45), they said.
    A total of 52 candidates, including eight women, are contesting in this phase, the state's fourth. Nineteen nominees each are competing in Dumka and Godda, while 14 are contesting in Rajmahal.
    Around 53.23 lakh electors were eligible to cast their votes in the three constituencies, with Godda having the highest number of voters at 20.28 lakh, and Dumka the lowest at 15.91 lakh.
    Over two lakh people are first-time voters in the 18-19 age group, while 439 are aged over 100 years.
    Parts of the three constituencies saw rains, bringing much-needed respite to voters from the sweltering heat, the officials said.
    The CEO said, "A voter turnout of 68.82 per cent was recorded in Jharkhand today. Dumka registered the highest polling at 71.07.79 per cent, followed by Rajmahal (68.35 per cent) and Godda (67.45 per cent)."
    The turnout is being updated and it is likely to increase further, he said.
    The CEO said that an unfortunate incident took place in Jamtara where driver of a private vehicle died after falling from a bridge. In another incident, a polling staff identified as Nasim suffered some heart-related issues. He was airlifted and admitted to a Ranchi hospital, he said.
    Kumar said that preparations were in place to ensure free and fair polls, including sealing the borders with neighbouring Bihar and West Bengal, where elections are taking place as well.
    Arrangements were made to transport elderly citizens and persons with disabilities (PwDs) to and from the polling booths, he said. Of the 6,258 total booths, 5,769 are in rural areas. A total of 241 booths are managed by women, 11 by youths and seven by PwDs.
    All eyes are on the Dumka seat where BJP's Sita Soren, sister-in-law of jailed former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, is contesting against INDIA bloc's Nalin Soren.
    Sita, a former three-term JMM legislator, joined the BJP just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, citing "neglect" and "isolation" by JMM after the death of her husband Durga Soren in 2009.
    Sita during the polls alleged irregularities in the voting process and demanded re-polling in the constituency. Sita claimed that the voting process was being intentionally delayed.
    Over 400 people in a village in Dumka district boycotted voting in the final phase of the Lok Sabha polls to protest against the construction of a coal dumping yard. Only four electors have exercised their franchise till 3 pm at booth number 94 in Bagdubhi village.
    In Godda, BJP sitting MP Nishikant Dubey is contesting against INDIA bloc's Pradip Yadav.
    The Rajmahal seat is expected to witness an interesting fight as JMM's Borio legislator Lobin Hembrom is contesting as an Independent against sitting JMM MP Vijay Hansdak. The BJP has fielded its former state president Tala Marandi from the seat.
    Dubey cast his vote along with his wife and two sons, and claimed that the BJP was going to win more than 400 seats in the country.
    He also exuded confidence in winning the seat by a record margin.
    Assembly Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahto also exercised his franchise at a booth in Patanpur in Jamtara district.
    Polling in Jharkhand commenced on May 13 in four Lok Sabha constituencies of Singhbhum, Khunti, Lohardaga, and Palamu, where 66.01 per cent voter turnout was recorded.
    The second round of polling in the state on May 20 for Chatra, Koderma, and Hazaribag Lok Sabha seats saw 64.39 per cent turnout.
    On May 25, a 67.68 per cent turnout was recorded in the third phase of polling in the state in four Lok Sabha seats of Giridih, Dhanbad, Ranchi, and Jamshedpur.
    A total of 244 candidates -- 212 men, 31 women and 1 transgender -- are in the fray in the 14 Lok Sabha seats.
    Senior leaders of both NDA and INDIA bloc had left no stone unturned to galvanise people’s support in favour of them in all 14 Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand.
    Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president JP Nadda, Union Ministers such as Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh campaigned for BJP candidates in Jharkhand.
    On the other side, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, party leader Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Jharkhand CM Champai Soren and Kalpana Soren, wife of jailed former Chief Minister Hemant Soren, campaigned extensively for INDIA bloc candidates.
    Of the 14 Lok Sabha seats, BJP had won 11 constituencies, while AJSU Party, Congress and JMM had won one seat each in the 2019 polls.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)