Lok Sabha Elections 2024: 1st Phase Voting Begins In 102 Constituencies In India, 5 In Assam

GUWAHATI: The voting for the first phase of the Lok Sabha Elections has begun on April 19 in a day when as many as 102 constituencies across 21 states and union territories will head to the polling booths.

The state of Assam will see its five Lok Sabha constituencies of Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Kaziranga, and Dibrugarh casting the ballots to elect their MP.

BJP's Kamakhya Prasad Tasa and Roselina Tirkey of the Congress Party will lock horns for the Kaziranga Lok Sabha seat while Pradan Baruah of the BJP will battle it out against Congress' Uday Shankar Hazarika for the Lakhimpur constituency.

On the other hand, former Chief Minister of Assam and Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal of the incumbent BJP will be up against AJP's Lurinjyoti Gogoi and Manoj Dhanowar of the AAP in a three corner race.

As far as the Jorhat Lok Sabha seat is concerned, Gaurav Gogoi, who is currently serving as the Deputy Leader of the Indian National Congress in the Lok Sabha since 2020, will compete against sitting BJP MP Topon Kumar Gogoi.

Lastly, in Sonitpur, BJP candidate Ranjit Dutta will face off against Premlal Ganju of the Congress Party.

Campaigning for the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls concluded on Wednesday as political parties carried out their final rallies with voting scheduled for April 19.

In the previous General elections held in 2019, the Congress-led UPA bloc emerged victorious in 45 out of these 102 seats while BJP-led NDA won 41.

Notably, Assembly elections will also be held in the northeastern states of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh simultaneously alongside the Lok Sabha polls.

Assembly polls will be conducted in 50 out of 60 seats in Arunachal Pradesh with the BJP uncontested in 10.

The state of Sikkim will witness 147 candidates, including 12 women, fight it out for the 32 Assembly seats.

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