Voting underway for last phase of LS polls, EVM glitches at many poll booths
New Delhi: Amid reports of EVM glitches, an average 10-14 per cent polling was recorded in the first two hours of voting on Sunday in 59 seats in the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha elections to decide the fate of 918 candidates including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Voting is underway in all 13 seats of Punjab and an equal number of seats in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight seats each in Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, four in Himachal Pradesh, three in Jharkhand and the lone seat Chandigarh.
In Uttar Pradesh, nearly 10 per cent voting was recorded in the first two hours of polling in 13 Lok Sabha seats. Varanasi, the constituency of Prime Minister Modi, recorded 10.87 per cent polling till 9 am.
Modi's main challengers are Congress's Ajay Rai and SP-BSP candidate Shalini Yadav. Madhya Pradesh recorded around 13.19 per cent voter turnout in the first three hours of polling in eight Lok Sabha seats.
Polling for eight seats - Dewas, Ujjain, Mandsaur, Ratlam, Dhar, Indore, Khargone and Khandwa was going on peacefully since 7 am, MP's Chief Electoral Officer V L Kantha Rao said.
Long queues were seen at several booths.Some state leaders from Malwa Nimar region of ndore constituency were also seen standing in queues to cast their votes.
In West Bengal, 13.41 per cent polling was recorded till 9 am in 9 LS seats.
"Polling till 9 am in nine Lok Sabha constituencies was absolutely peaceful. We have received no complaints of any violence or any problem from anywhere in any of the polling booths," a senior IPS officer told PTI.
There were, however, reports of malfunctioning of EVMs from some polling stations.
"We are looking into that. Reserve EVMs are being sent to those polling centres where from we got reports of some machines not functioning properly. Polling there will soon start," the official added.
In Bihar, an estimated 8.08 per cent of the 1,52,52,608 voters exercised their franchise in the eight Lok Sabha seats in Bihar tll 9 am, an official said.
Altogether 157 candidates including four Union Ministers are in the fray in the seventh and final phase of polling in Bihar.
Polling is currently underway in eight Lok Sabha constituencies - Nalanda, Patna Sahib, Pataliputra, Ara, Buxar, Jehanabad, Sasaram and Karakat .
"Polling has been peaceful with no untoward incidents reported from any of these constituencies, so far except initial reports of EVM malfunctioning," official sources said.
As per reports reaching from district headquarters, voting was hampered at few polling stations in Ara, Sasaram, Jehanabad, Pataliputra, Buxar.
Official sources said EVM problems have been redressed.
Prominent among those who cast their vote were Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, his Deputy Sushil Kumar Modi, and Union Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
In neighbouring Jharkhand, an estimated 10.48 per cent of the total 45,64,681 voters exercised their franchise till 9 am. A large number of women and first time voters were seen in queues before booths as polling began at 7 am. Polling will end at 4 pm.
Polling was also underway in all 13 Lok Sabha constituencies of Punjab and the lone Chandigarh constituency, with SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and Union ministers Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Puri among those in the fray.
Among early voters were cricketer Harbhajan Singh, Congress candidate from Anandpur Sahib Manish Tewari, sitting MP from Patiala Dharamvira Gandhi, BJP national secretary Tarun Chugh, Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal and Congress candidate from Amritsar Gurjeet Singh Aujla.
There were reports of technical glitches in EVMs at several places including Ludhiana, Samana and Moga. Himachal Pradesh witnssed about 14 per cent turnout n the first two hours of polling.
Polling began at 7 am in Shimla (SC), Mandi, Hamirpur and Kangra.
EVM snags delayed voting at nine polling stations. Voting restarted after the nine faulty EVMs were replaced, a state election officer said.
In the last phase of Lok Sabha polls, over 10.01 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise. The Election Commission has set up more than 1.12 lakh polling stations and has deployed security personnel for smooth conduct of polls.
An average of 66.88 per cent voters exercised their franchise in the last six phases. The whole elections were spread over 38 days. Counting of votes will be taken up on May 23.
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Hubballi: Gym trainer assaulted; police say clash due to personal reasons
Hubballi: A gym trainer was allegedly assaulted by a group of people following accusations of sexual assault and ‘love jihad’, even as both families involved in the case traded serious allegations.
According to police, a group of individuals went to the residence of Sameer Mulla, a resident of Vijayanagar, and questioned him over his friendship with a woman he had met at a gym. The situation escalated into a clash, during which he was allegedly dragged away and assaulted. He sustained minor injuries and was admitted to KIMS hospital.
N. Shashikumar said that after this incident, members from Sameer’s side went to the woman’s house, leading to another clash in which one person was injured. “It was wrong for groups to go near houses. We will take necessary legal action,” he said, adding that the incident appears to have arisen from personal reasons. Police have taken some individuals into custody and are investigating the matter.
Sameer Mulla was reportedly thrashed by a group of Sangh Parivar activists and later handed over to police at the Old Hubballi Police Station after relatives of the woman and members of Hindu organisations gathered at his residence in Rajnagar.
The woman’s family alleged assault and threats from Sameer’s relatives at their Vikas Nagar residence.
Meanwhile, Sameer’s family denied the allegations and accused the woman’s relatives and others of assaulting and kidnapping him. His sister said the two had been in a relationship for three years and that the allegations were baseless.
Police said statements from both sides have been recorded, and a detailed investigation is underway. Sameer remains hospitalised, and appropriate legal action will be taken based on findings.
In a video statement shared on social media, the 20-year-old woman alleged that Sameer had given her an intoxicant, recorded videos without her consent, and sexually assaulted her. She lodged a complaint alleging rape and blackmail, which police are investigating.
In another video, Sameer denied the allegations, claiming the video was recorded with consent and that the accusations were made under pressure.
Former Hubballi-Dharwad Urban Development Authority (HDUDA) chairman Nagesh Kalburgi termed the incident a serious matter and urged police to take strict action.
Police said the case involves multiple complaints from both sides, and further investigation is underway.
