Polling for bypolls in 28 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh underway.
Voting was underway on Tuesday for by-elections to 54 assembly constituencies spread across 10 states, including 28 seats in Madhya Pradesh where the BJP is locked in a keen contest with the Congress to save its government. All COVID-19 guidelines were in place as polling began with election staff in personal protective equipment (PPE) suits, more polling booths to prevent overcrowding, thermal screening, sanitisers and masks and gloves for voters as well as markings to ensure social distancing. Voting started at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, except in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Nagaland. The number of people allowed in a polling booth has been restricted. The last hour has been reserved for voters who have tested positive for COVID-19. The votes will be counted on November 10. In Gujarat, polling is taking place for eight seats - Abdasa, Limdi, Morbi, Dhari, Gadhada (ST), Karjan, Dangs (ST) and Kaprada (ST). The seats fell vacant after sitting Congress MLAs quit before the Rajya Sabha elections in June. In Uttar Pradesh, polling is taking place in seven constituencies -- Naugaon Sadat, Bulandshahr, Tundla, Bangarmau, Ghatampur, Deoria, and Malhani. In Karnataka, bypolls are being held for the Sira and Raja Rajeshwari Nagar seats. Bypolls are talso taking place for two seats each in Odisha (Tirtol and Balasore Sadar), Jharkhand (Dumka and Bermo), Nagaland (Southern Angami-I and Pungro-Kiphire). In Telangana, Haryana, and Chhattisgarh, polling is taking place for Dubbaka, Baroda seats, and Marwahi seats, respectively.
MADHYA PRADESH, GUJARAT, UP ASSEMBLY BYPOLLS HIGHLIGHTS
07:43 pm: MP bypolls: 66.28 pc turnout till 6 pm; one hurt in violence
Amid reports of violence at a few places, an estimated 66.28 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 6 pm on Tuesday in the crucial bypolls to 28 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh, an official said.
One person was injured in stray incidents of violence, police said.
07:32 pm: Jharkhand bypolls: 62.46 polling in two assembly seats
Around 62.46 percent of total 5.63 lakh voters cast their ballots in the by-elections to two assembly seats in Jharkhand on Tuesday
amidst tight security and strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocol, election officials said.
The voter turnout was 65.27 percent for Dumka reserved seat and 60.20 percent for Bermo seat in Bokaro district, the Chief Electoral Officer's office said.
07:28 pm: Karnataka assembly bypolls: 39.15 percent polling at RR Nagar, 77.34 percent at Sira till 5 pm
Polling for the Rajarajeshwari Nagar and Sira assembly by-elections in Karnataka held under the shadow of coronavirus concluded peacefully without any major glitches on Tuesday.
Poor voter turnout marked the Rajarajeshwari Nagar bypoll with a polling percentage of only 39.15, whereas in Sira 77.34 per cent voting took place till 5 pm, according to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer Sanjiv Kumar.
07:17 pm: Gujarat bypolls: 53.28% polling recorded
An overall 53.28 per cent polling was recorded in by-elections in eight Gujarat Assembly seats till 5 pm on Tuesday, Election Commission data said.
The highest 70.12% polling was in the tribal region of Dangs, followed by 63.94% in Kaprada. Limdi registered 54.35 per cent polling and Gadhada 46.69% by 5 pm.
07:10 pm: UP assembly by-polls: Over 51% of votes cast an hour before the slated end of the voting
Voters turnout for the Uttar Pradesh assembly byelections for seven seats crossed 51 per cent at 5 pm on Tuesday, an hour before the slated end of polling, amid an allegation of bogus voting for Naugaon Sadat seat in Amroha and poll boycott in Tundla.
The polling for the seven seats with 88 candidates in the fray, which began at 7 am amid tight security and adherence to anti-COVID precautions, picked up momentum as the day progressed.
07:06 pm: Karnataka bypolls: COVID-19 patient cast his vote at RR Nagar polling booth
A COVID-19 patient cast his vote at a polling booth in Karnataka's RR Nagar, earlier today He was facilitated with an ambulance. The polling booth was later sanitized to facilitate other voters.
06:57 pm: Odisha bypolls: 68.19 percent voter turnout recorded in Balasore; 67.97 percent Tirtol till 5 pm
68.19 percent and 67.97 percent voter turnout recorded till 5 pm in Balasore and Tirtol assembly by-poll, respectively.
06:48 pm: Madhya Pradesh Bypolls: Voter turnout of 66.09 per cent recorded till 5:30 pm
Voter turnout of 66.09 per cent recorded till 5:30 pm in Madhya Pradesh by-elections. Polling is being held for 28 seats in the state.
06:10 pm: Nagaland bypolls: 78.05 pc voting till 3 pm in two assembly seats
Around 78.05 per cent of total 43,242 voters exercised their franchise till 3 pm in by-elections to two assembly seats in Nagaland on Tuesday amidst tight security and strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocol, election officials said.
06:04 pm: Haryana Baroda bypoll: Over 46 percent polling recorded till 4 pm
A total of 14 candidates, including Olympian wrestler and BJP nominee Yogeshwar Dutt, are contesting the Baroda assembly bypoll in Haryana, where over 46 percent polling was registered till 4 pm on Tuesday.
06:02 pm: MP Bypolls: Digvijaya questions use of EVMs
Amid the polling for by-elections on 28 assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday, Congress veteran Digvijaya Singh questioned the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in India, saying the device is prone to hacking.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan responded to Singh, stating that the Congress has already sensed its defeat in these bypolls and hence its party leader is finding fault with EVMs which are being used in India during polls for decades.
5:50 pm: Gujarat bypolls: Over 50 percent voter turnout till 4 pm
A total of 50.43 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 4 pm in the bypolls to eight Assembly seats in Gujarat on Tuesday, officials said. The voting began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.
4:50 pm: MP bypolls: Congress, BJP supporters clash in Morena, 1 injured
Congress and BJP supporters clashed at a polling booth in Madhya Pradesh even as voting was underway for by-elections in 28 Assembly seats of the state on Tuesday, officials said. One person was injured in the clash, they said. A total of 26.86 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 12 pm on Tuesday, an election official said. BJP's Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia, who quit the Congress in March this year and joined the saffron party, cast his vote at a booth in Gwalior district.
2:40 pm: Madhya Pradesh bypolls
Voter turnout of 42.71% recorded till 1 pm in Madhya Pradesh by-elections. Polling is being held for 28 seats in the state.
2:10 pm: Jharkhand bypolls: 46.47 pc voting till 1 pm in two assembly seats
Around 46.47 per cent of total 5.63 lakh voters cast their ballots till 1 pm in by-elections to two assembly seats in Jharkhand on Tuesday amidst tight security and strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocol. Dumka seat reported 46.96 per cent turnout, while 46.07 per cent of voters cast their ballots in Bermo constituency of Bokaro district.
1:30 pm: MP bypolls: Liquor, cash, other assets worth Rs 23 cr seized
As bypolls in 28 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh began on Tuesday morning, authorities said cash, liquor, vehicles and other assets worth nearly Rs 23 crore have been seized till now in the state.
1:20 pm: Karnataka: 26.58% and 44.13% voter turnout recorded till 1 pm in Raja Rajeshwari Nagar and Sira assembly by-poll, respectively.
12:55 am: Gujarat bypolls: Over 23 per cent voter turnout till 11 am
An average 23.29 per cent voter turnout was registered till 11 am during polling for by-elections to eight Assembly seats in Gujarat on Tuesday. Voting will continue till 6 pm in 3,024 polling booths of these eight seats. The by-elections to these seats were necessitated after the sitting Congress MLAs resigned ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls held in June this year. As per an official release by the Election Commission, 23.29 per cent of the total 18.75 lakh voters exercised their franchise between 7 am and 11 am.
12:45 am Odisha bypolls: 26.24 pc voting in two assembly seats till 11 am
Around 26.24 per cent of 4.67 lakh voters cast their ballots in the first four hours of polling for by-elections to two assembly seats in Odisha on Tuesday amidst tight security and strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocol. Balasore seat reported 27.6 per cent polling, while 24.93 per cent of voters in Titrol constituency in Jagatsinghpur district exercised their franchise till 11 am.
12:40 pm: Madhya Pradsh bypolls: 22% turnout till 11 am
Madhya Pradesh records 22 per cent voter turn out till 11 am. Polling is underway for 28 Assembly seats in the state.
12:30 pm: Madhya Pradesh by-polls: Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and his wife Kiran Tomar cast their vote in Gwalior
UP bypolls: Firozabad residents boycott election
Residents of Firozabad have decided to boycott assembly by-election alleging lack of development in the area.
Nagaland bypolls: 36.98 % turnout till 10 am
Voting underway for the by-election to Southern Angami-I and Pungro-Kiphire assembly constituencies of the state; visuals from Kohima. By-poll voter turnout recorded at 36.98 % till 10 am.
11:50 am: Dubbak by-election in Telangana
Polling for Dubbak Assembly by-poll got underway on Tuesday with voters queuing up outside the booths to exercise their franchise. BJP candidate for Dubbaka bypolls, Raghunandan Rao, casts his vote at a polling station in the assembly constituency.
11:40 am: Polling underway for Baroda bypoll; Khattar, Hooda appeal to people to vote in large numbers
Polling was underway on Tuesday for the bypoll to Baroda assembly seat in Haryana. Around 1.81 lakh eligible voters will decide the fate of 14 candidates, including Olympian wrestler and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominee Yogeshwar Dutt, in the fray for the bypoll. The Baroda seat fell vacant in April after the demise of Congress MLA Krishan Hooda, who had won the seat in the 2009, 2014 and 2019 Assembly polls. "In democracy, each vote is valuable and your one vote is also valuable. I appeal to all of you to participate in the 'utsav' of democracy with your family in large numbers and cast votes," Khattar tweeted. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, in a tweet, also urged voters to exercise their franchise by following COVID-19 related safety precautions.
By-poll voter turnout till 10 am
Odisha (Balasore and Tirtol) - 9.81 %
Jharkhand (Dumka, Bermo) - 13.21 %
Nagaland (Southern Angami-I, Pungro-Kiphire) - 36.98 %
Chhattisgarh (Marwahi) - 2.40 %
Haryana (Baroda) - 13 %
Telangana (Dubbaka) - 12.74 %
11 am: Jharkhand bypolls: 13.28 pc voting till 9 am in two assembly seats
Around 13.28 per cent of voters cast their ballots in the first two hours of polling for by-elections to two assembly seats in Jharkhand on Tuesday amidst tight security and strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocol. Dumka seat reported 13.89 per cent turnout, while 12.67 per cent of voters cast their ballots in Bermo constituency of Bokaro district till 9 am.
10:50 am: 6.90 per cent voter turnout recorded till 10am in by-poll underway for two assembly seats in Karnataka - Sira and Raja Rajeshwari Nagar.
Jharkhand bypolls: Voting underway for the by-election to Bermo assembly constituency of Bokaro district
10:40 am: Voter turnout of 11.48% recorded till 10 am in Madhya Pradesh by-elections. Polling is being held for 28 seats in the state.
10:35 am: 11.52 per cent turnout recorded till 10 am in polling for by-elections to eight seats of Gujarat Assembly.
10:30 am: BJP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia cast his vote in Gwalior for the by-election to the state assembly constituency.
10:20 am: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that voting is the soul of democracy. "It strengthens democracy. All of you must vote to choose the govt that can fulfil your aspirations. Step out & vote. Let's make an 'Atmanirbhar' Madhya Pradesh," he said.
Karnataka bypolls: Voting underway for the by-poll to Sira. Visuals from the polling station at Government First Grade College, Sira
10 am: Average voter turnout of 7.87% recorded till 9 am across seven assembly by-poll constituencies: Joint chief Electoral Officer, Uttar Pradesh
9:50 am: A man carries his elderly mother in his arms to the polling booth in Gwalior to help her cast her vote in the by-election to the state assembly constituency.
9:25 am: Haryana bypolls: BJP candidate for by-election to the Baroda assembly constituency, Yogeshwar Dutt casts his vote at a polling booth in Bhainswal Kalan. He says, "This time people would vote for development."
9:18 am: Gujarat: BJP candidate for by-election to Limbdi Assembly constituency, Kiritsinh Rana cast his vote at a polling booth in Surendranagar
9:10 am: Congress' candidate Kusuma H casts her vote in RR Nagar
9 am: BJP leader Imarti Devi casts her vote
8:20 am: Polling underway in Indore - Latest Visuals
Karnataka: Voting underway at RR Nagar, Sira
Voting is underway for the bypolls to Rajarajeshwari Nagar and Sira assembly seats in Bengaluru and Tumakuru amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The death of Sira MLA B Satyanarayana, who was from the JD(S), and resignation of RR Nagar Congress MLA Munirathna from the assembly last year led to the bypolls.
Chhattisgarh: Voting for Marwahi Assembly bypoll begins
Voting for the Marwahi assembly bypoll in Chhattisgarh began on Tuesday morning amid tight security and COVID-19 protocols in place. The tribal-dominated Marwahi seat is witnessing a straight fight between the ruling Congress and opposition BJP. The bypoll for the Scheduled Tribes (ST)-reserved constituency was necessitated following the death of sitting JCC (J) legislator and former chief minister Ajit Jogi on May 29. The seat, a bastion of the Jogi family for several years now, is witnessing a fight between the Congress and the BJP after the nomination papers of Amit Jogi, the son of Ajit Jogi, and his wife Richa were rejected by the returning officer, who said their caste certificates were invalid.
Gujarat: Voting for bypolls in 8 Assembly seats begins
Voting for bypolls in eight Assembly seats in Gujarat began on Tuesday morning. Polling began at 8 am and will end at 6 pm. Authorities are taking steps to check the spread of COVID-19 during voting. Altogether 81 candidates are in fray in the eight seats, which collectively have 18.75 lakh voters. As not more than 1,000 voters are allowed in one booth due to COVID-19 concerns and guidelines of the Election Commission, 3,024 polling booths have been set up, higher than in a normal scenario.
Madhya Pradesh: Voting for bypolls in 28 Assembly seats begins
Voting for bypolls in 28 Assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh began on Tuesday morning. Polling began at 7 am and will end at 6 pm, while adhering to the COVID-19 restrictions. The last hour of voting will be for COVID-19 patients and people suspected to be suffering from the disease. Authorities have set up 250 flying squads, 173 surveillance teams and 293 police check-posts to ensure smooth polling.
