Lok Sabha election: Everything that happened on 1st polling day
The first phase of voting for the 18th Lok Sabha elections began on Friday in 21 states and union territories. The overall voter turnout was recorded at 59.7% as of 5:00pm. West Bengal saw the highest voter turnout at 77.6%, followed by Tripura at 76.1% and Puducherry at 72.1%, among others. Bihar had the lowest turnout, with 46.3%. Here's a quick recap of the first day of polling.
Violence, voter indimation in West Bengal
The state of West Bengal, which is no stranger to violence, especially during elections, saw three constituencies, Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, and Jalpaiguri, go to the polls. In Chandmari, near the town of Cooch Behar, at least one person was injured in a scuffle between workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In the same constituency, Anant Barman, a local TMC leader, was rushed to the hospital following an alleged crude bomb attack in Bhetaguri.
Gunfire exchange in Manipur
Similarly, in Manipur, there were reports of violence near a polling booth. The incident happened when armed miscreants opened fire near the polling station while people had lined up to exercise their franchise in Imphal East, Khongman. At least three people were injured. In Karnataka, a BJP worker died in a hit-and-run accident during an electoral campaign in the Kodagu area. One person has been arrested in the case.
'0%' voting in 6 Nagaland districts
Another northeastern state that made headlines is Nagaland. Polling stations in six districts of the state saw almost0% voter turnout due to an indefinite shutdown call by the Eastern Nagaland People's Organization (ENPO). The ENPO, a prominent body representing seven tribal groups in the eastern region, initiated this shutdown to advocate for their demand for a separate state. Nagaland has one Lok Sabha seat, which has been held by the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party's Tokheho Yepthomi since a 2018 byelection.
Which states will vote in the 1st phase
All of Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats and 12 of Rajasthan's 25 voted in this first phase. Others are Assam (5 seats), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Bihar (4), Chhattisgarh (1), Madhya Pradesh (6), Maharashtra (5), Manipur (2), Meghalaya (2), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Sikkim (1), Tripura (1), Uttar Pradesh (8), Uttarakhand (5), West Bengal (3), Andaman & Nicobar (1), Jammu & Kashmir (1), Lakshadweep (1), and Puducherry (1).
