UP Municipal Election 2023: Voting for civic poll concludes peacefully

A police constable tasked with the security of ballot boxes at a vote counting centre in the Kokhraj area of this Uttar Pradesh district died on duty under "suspicious circumstances", officials said on Thursday. Head Constable Rajeev Singh (46), a resident of Ghazipur district, was deployed to ensure security of ballot boxes in the strong room set up at Bhavans Mehta College, located in the Bharwari Nagar Palika Parishad area, they said. Polling for the urban local body in Kaushambi was held in the first phase on May 4.

Voting in the civic polls concluded peacefully in Uttar Pradesh.

Aligarh reported 46.20 per cent voter turnout in the civic polls till 5 pm.

Ghaziabad Janpad records 34.69 per cent voter turnout.

Here is the polling percentage till 1 pm in Kanpur district. 

• Municipal Corporation - 23.04 %
• Nagar Palika Parishad Billhaur- 45 %
• Nagar Palika Parishad Ghatampur- 35 %
• Nagar Panchayat Bithoor - 44.95 %
• Nagar Panchayat Shivrajpur - 32 %

UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya urged people to vote.  

Samajwadi Party alleged that ‘Muslim voters at the Bholanath Dharamshala polling booth of Kannauj Municipal Council were assaulted by people of the Bharatiya Janata Party and that the police did not take any action. 

A roadways bus hit a woman going to vote in greater Noida. Following the incident, she was rushed to a hospital where she succumbed to her injuries. 

Union Minister and former Army Chief General VK Singh cast his vote at the polling station in Ghaziabad.

A voting turnout of 10.79% was recorded till 9 am in the state.  

Kanpur district polling percentage till 9 am

• Municipal Corporation: 5.83%
• Nagar Palika Parishad Billhaur: 10%
• Nagar Palika Parishad Ghatampur: 10%
• Nagar Panchayat Bithoor: 8%
• Nagar Panchayat Shivrajpur: 8%
• Nagar Palika Parishad Auraiya

The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) mayoral candidate Sunita Dayal cast her vote at a polling booth in Ghaziabad. 

BJP's mayoral candidate Sunita Dayal

Women voters were seen in large numbers at a polling booth in Azamgarh as voting is underway for the second phase of urban local body polls.

Pink booth set up at polling station in Rajnagar, Ghaziabad, for the second phase of urban local body polls in Uttar Pradesh. This has been done to encourage the participation of women in the festival of democracy. 

Voting is underway in Gautam Buddha Nagar for the second phase of urban local body polls in Uttar Pradesh.

People have started coming to the Ghaziabad polling booth to vote for their favourite candidates. A few voters said that they are voting on the issue of development. Notably, there is a direct contest between the BJP and SP for the post of mayor. 

People at Ghaziabad polling booth to cast their votes

The voting has started for 7 municipalities and 14 Nagar panchayats in Badaun district.  A total of 603 polling stations have been set up in the district, out of which the number of "sensitive" polling stations is 79 and the number of "highly sensitive" polling stations is 94. Meanwhile, elaborate security arrangements have also been put in place at the polling stations.

A pink polling booth has been set up at the AKP Girls Degree College in Khurja, Bulandshahr to encourage women voters. The booth has been completely decorated with pink colour and balloons. Besides, a selfie point has also been made here by the district administration. 

Pink polling booth in Bulandshahr

According to district president of the BJP in Shahjahanpur KC Mishra, ministers Jitin Prasada and Suresh Khanna will cast their votes in Shahjahanpur. Another minister in the UP government, JPS Rathore, will also cast his vote in Shahjahanpur.  

The polling started for the Baghpat Municipal Corporation elections as voters were seen queuing up early in the morning. The polling will be held here in 3 Municipal and 6 Nagar Panchayats. Meanwhile, security has also been beefed up in the region. 

Voting begins at Baghpat Municipal Corporation

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath urged voters to participate in the festival of democracy to form a triple-engine government. "Your valuable vote will make your Municipal Corporation more empowered," he tweeted. 

Campaigning for the final phase of the urban local body elections in Uttar Pradesh ended on Tuesday evening. The counting of votes for both phases will take place on May 13.