PM Modi/File Image
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to vote as the first phase of polling for Bihar assembly polls kickstarted Wednesday. He also asked people to follow precautionary measures amid the coronavirus pandemic.
"Today is the first phase of voting in Bihar assembly election. I urge all voters to ensure their participation while also taking COVID-19 related precautionary measures. Ensure "do gaj ki doori" and wearing of masks," Modi said in a tweet.
The polling of votes began at 7 am but the voting hour will be extended by one hour until 6 pm, except in the Left Wing Extremism affected areas, so that COVID-19 patients can vote in the last hour of the day.
In the first phase, eight ministers are trying their luck -- Prem Kumar, Krishnandan Verma, Shailesh Kumar, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Jai Kumar Singh, Ramnarayan Mandal, Santosh Kumar Nirala and Brij Kishore Bind, apart from former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi.
At least 952 men and 114 women candidates are in the fray in the first phase. About 33 of the constituencies going to polls in the first phase have been declared as “sensitive or hypersensitive” constituencies by the poll panel. As many as 31,371 polling stations have been set up in this phase and as many Electronic Voting Machines and Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines will be used.
In Bihar, elections are being held in three phases for 243 assembly seats. The second and third phase will be held on November 3 and November 7 respectively. The counting of votes will be held on November 10.
