Maharashtra-Jharkhand Assembly elections 2024: Amid ongoing Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday urged people of both states to vote in large numbers in order to contribute in strengthening the nation’s democratic values. Taking to his X account, he urged people of Maharashtra to actively participate in the Assembly elections as voting takes place across all 288 constituencies on Wednesday. "Voting will be held for all the seats in Maharashtra Assembly elections today. I urge the voters of the state to be a part of it with full enthusiasm and enhance the beauty of the celebration of democracy. On this occasion, there is an appeal to all the youth and women voters to vote enthusiastically," he added.
PM Modi's message to voters of Jharkhand
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister also called upon the people of Jharkhand to enthusiastically participate in the second and final phase of the Assembly elections. Highlighting the significance of every vote, he encouraged citizens to set a new record for voter turnout. "Today is the second and last phase of the great festival of democracy in Jharkhand. I urge all the voters to participate enthusiastically in this and create a new record of voting. On this occasion, I especially congratulate all my young friends who are going to vote for the first time. Your every vote is the strength of the state," he posted on X.
Maharashtra Assembly Elections
The voting began at 7 am on Wednesday for the single-phase Maharashtra assembly elections and will conclude at 6 pm. Polling is taking place across 288 assembly constituencies. A total of 4,136 candidates are contesting the elections, including 2,086 independents. The BJP is contesting 149 seats, Shiv Sena 81, and the NCP 59. The Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Shiv Sena (UBT) 95, and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) 86. The BSP is contesting 237 seats, while other smaller parties are also in the fray. The state has approximately 9.7 crore registered voters.
Jharkhand Assembly elections phase 2
Meanwhile, the second phase of the Jharkhand Assembly Elections 2024 is also underway across 38 seats in the state. The elections are being conducted in two phases: the first phase took place on November 13, and the second phase on November 20. In the second phase, prominent seats are under the spotlight. Chief Minister Hemant Soren is contesting from the Barhait constituency, facing BJP's Gamliyel Hembrom. Another key candidate is BJP's Babulal Marandi, contesting from the Dhanwar constituency. Marandi, the state's first Chief Minister after its formation in 2000, served as Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing assembly. He is up against JMM's Nizam Uddin Ansari. The counting of votes in Jharkhand as well as in Maharashtra will take place on November 23.
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