THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
New Delhi, May 7: Voting is underway today for the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024. Amid tight security arrangements, polling began at 7 am for 93 seats in 11 states, which will continue until 6 pm.
In the third phase, a total of 17.24 crore voters will cast their votes at 1.85 lakh polling centres. This includes 8.85 crore male voters and 8.39 crore female voters. In this phase, many prominent leaders of the BJP are trying their luck.
Notably, voting was supposed to take place on 94 seats in 11 states in the third phase. However, due to the uncontested election of the BJP’s sole candidate from the Surat seat in Gujarat, voting is not taking place there.
The states in the third phase voting
In the third phase, voting is being held in 7 seats of Chhattisgarh, all 25 seats of Gujarat, remaining 14 out of 28 seats of Karnataka, 10 seats of Uttar Pradesh, 2 seats of Goa, 4 seats of Assam, 5 seats of Bihar, 9 seats of Madhya Pradesh, 11 seats of Maharashtra, 4 seats of West Bengal and all 2 seats of Goa. Apart from this, voting is also being held today in the Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1 seat) and Daman and Diu (1 seat).
However, the election for the Anantnag-Rajouri seat has now been postponed to the sixth phase.
PM Modi casts his vote
Prime Minister Narendra Modi cast his vote at Nishan Higher Secondary School in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He also appealed to the general public to vote.
“Urging all those who are voting in today’s phase to vote in record numbers. Their active participation will certainly make the elections more vibrant,” PM Modi wrote on X.
तीसरे चरण के सभी मतदाताओं से मेरा आग्रह है कि वे अधिक से अधिक संख्या में मतदान करें और वोटिंग का एक नया रिकॉर्ड बनाएं। आप सभी की सक्रिय भागीदारी लोकतंत्र के इस महोत्सव की रौनक को और बढ़ाएगी
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 7, 2024
The prominent leaders contesting today
In Gujarat’s Gandhinagar constituency, Home Minister Amit Shah is contesting the elections. He is up against Congress candidate Sonal Ramanbhai Patel.
Speaking of the Baramati seat in Maharashtra, Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule is facing off against Sunetra Pawar, wife of Ajit Pawar.
Jyotiraditya Scindia (Guna), Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar), Narayan Rane (Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg constituency), Shripad Yasso Naik (North Goa), Devusinh Chauhan (Kheda constituency), Bhagwant Khuba (Bidar constituency), Purushottam Rupala (Rajkot), Prahlad Joshi (Dharwad), and SP Singh Baghel (Agra) are contesting elections.
Meanwhile, from the opposition, Digvijay Singh, Dimple Yadav, among others, are also in the fray.
West Bengal leads in voter turnout till 9 am
Till 9 am, 10.57% voting took place for the third phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024. Assam has recorded 10.12%, Bihar 10.03%, Chhattisgarh 13.24%, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu 10.13%, Goa 12.35%, Gujarat 9.87%, Karnataka 9.45%, Madhya Pradesh 14.22%, Maharashtra 6.64%, Uttar Pradesh 11.63% and West Bengal has recorded 14.60% voting till 9 am.