Assam Lok Sabha poll: Polling peaceful in 2nd phase; turnout 70%

GUWAHATI: Braving the scorching sun, the voters in Assam turned out in large numbers to exercise their franchise in the second phase of the Lok Sabha poll in five constituencies today.

The polling was largely peaceful and incident-free in the 9,133 polling stations, barring a few technical glitches. The average voter’s turnout is 70 percent.

The percentages of voting in the five Lok Sabha constituencies till 5 p.m. are 69.6 percent in Dihpu, 71.1 percent in Karimganj, 65.5 percent in Silchar, 71.8 percent in Nagaon, and 72.9 percent in Darrang-Udalguri. These percentages of polling were to go up as reports from some of the remote areas were awaited.

The aged voters and voters belonging to PwDs (Persons with Disabilities) going to their poll booth with sticks in their hands, wheelchairs, pulling carts, in the cradles of near and dear ones, etc. perfectly depicted the enthusiasm on the part of the voters to cast their votes. A polling booth witnessed a pair of bridegrooms in their bridal attire casting their votes. Be it first-time voters or old and disabled ones, their brimming faces spoke volumes of their enthusiasm to exercise their franchise.

A section of young voters told the media that they want representatives who can raise the burning issues of Assam in Parliament in an efficient way, apart from the development of their respective constituencies. 

In the polling conducted today, 473 polling stations were managed by women, 12 by people with disabilities (PwDs), and 4,745 had webcasting facilities. Ninety of these were model polling stations.

Altogether, 77,09,276 electors sealed the fate of 61 candidates in five parliamentary constituencies in the state today. Of the total electors, 38,78,667 are male voters, while 38,30,439 are female voters, and the third gender comprises 170 voters.

Like in the first phase of the polls, there are several high-profile candidates in the fray for the second phase. They are Dilip Saikia (BJP), Madhab Rajbangshi (Congress), and Durgadas Boro (BPF), the candidates for Darrang-Udalguri parliamentary constituency; Amarsing Tisso (BJP), Joy Ram Engleng (Congress), and J.I. Kathar (Independent) for Diphu parliamentary constituency; Kripanath Mallah (BJP), Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury (Congress), Sahabul Islam Choudhury (AIUDF)—candidates for Karimganj parliamentary constituency; Parimal Suklabaidya (BJP), Surya Kanta Sarkar (Congress), Radheshyam Biswas (TMC)—candidates for Silchar parliamentary constituency; Suresh Borah (BJP), Pradyut Bordoloi (Congress), and Aminul Islam (AIUDF)—all contenders for the Nagaon parliamentary seat.

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