Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 7: Polling concludes in 57 constituencies at 5 PM

The voter turnout for the seventh phase of Lok Sabha elections recorded till 5 PM was 58.34 per cent with highest polling percentage registered in West Bengal with 69.89 per cent.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said that the opposition I.N.D.I.A bloc will get more than 295 seats in Lok Sabha elections. He made the claims after meeting the coalition leaders at his residence in Delhi.

The seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections concludes as voting ends across 57 constituencies ends.

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee casts her vote in Kolkata in the final phase of Lok Sabha elections.

Leaders of the I.N.D.I.A bloc meet on Saturday to discuss their strategy for the counting of votes on June 4. Acccordingly, the top brass of all the constuitient parties start reaching his residence in Delhi. The meeting is crucial as the seven-phased world's largest electoral exercise comes to an end today and the results are to be declared on June 4.

According to the Election Commission of Indai, the voter turnout till 3 pm has been recorded 49.68 per cent and Jharkhand toped with 60 per cent.

Bengali movie star and Trinamool Congress MP and candidate from Ghatal, Deepak Adhikari, casted his vote in Kolkata.

Over 35 per cent of over 1.62 crore voters exercised their franchise in eight Lok Sabha seats in Bihar till 1 pm on Saturday in the last phase of elections, officials said. Voting began at 7 am in Patna Sahib, Patliputra, Arrah, Karakat, Jehanabad, Buxar, Nalanda and Jehanabad Lok Sabha seats and will continue till 6 pm. The eight Lok Sabha constituencies recorded a voting percentage of 35.65 per cent at 1 pm.

1. Bihar - 35.65%
2. Chandigarh - 40.14%
3. Himachal Pradesh - 48.63%
4. Jharkhand - 46.80%
5. Odisha - 37.64%
6. Punjab - 37.80%
7. Uttar Pradesh - 39.31%
8. West Bengal - 45.07%
    

BJP leader RPN Singh casts his vote at a polling booth in Padrauna, Kushinagar, in the seventh and the last phase of Lok Sabha elections. 

Bihar - 24.25%
Chandigarh - 25.03%
Himachal Pradesh - 31.92%
Jharkhand - 29.55%
Odisha - 22.64%
Punjab - 23.91%
Uttar Pradesh - 28.02%
West Bengal - 28.10%

Around 10.58 per cent of over 1.62 crore voters exercised their franchise in eight Lok Sabha seats in Bihar till 9 am in the last phase of elections on Saturday, officials said. Voting began at 7 am in Patna Sahib, Patliputra, Arrah, Karakat, Jehanabad, Buxar, Nalanda and Jehanabad Lok Sabha seats and will continue till 6 pm. Patliputra recorded the highest turnout at 12.39 per cent, followed by Jehanabad (12.21), Karakat (11.75), Sasaram (11.18), Patna Sahib (10.76), Arrah (9.32) Nalanda (9.17) and Buxar (8.32) till 9 am.

In the seventh and final phase of the general election on Saturday, polling is being held for 57 constituencies spread across seven states and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, including Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha. The voting is being held in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three in Jharkhand, besides Chandigarh. Polling for the remaining 42 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and bypolls to six Assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh are also taking place simultaneously.

A voter turnout of 9.64 per cent was witnessed in the first two hours of polling in the 13 Lok Sabha constituencies of Punjab on Saturday. In the lone seat of Chandigarh, the voter turnout was recorded at 11.64 per cent. Amid tight security arrangements, polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, officials said. Among the 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Punjab, Ferozepur recorded a turnout of 11.61 per cent, followed by Sangrur with 11.36 per cent. The voter turnout in Amritsar was 7.22 per cent, Anandpur Sahib 9.53 per cent, Bathinda 9.74 per cent, Faridkot 9.83 per cent, Fatehgarh Sahib 8.27 per cent, Gurdaspur 8.81 per cent, Hoshiarpur 9.66 per cent, Jalandhar 9.34 per cent, Khadoor Sahib 9.71 per cent, Ludhiana 9.08 per cent and Patiala 10.98 per cent, as per Election Commission data. Voters, including elders, women and youngster

Indian Army personnel stand in a queue as they await their turn to cast their votes.

TMC National General Secretary and candidate from Diamond Harbour seat, Abhishek Banerjee said, "...This election is not to elect, but to protest and reject. This time, we are going to vote for our representative but also to give a befitting reply to the NDA 2 which came to power in 2019...From what I have seen on the ground, I can say that from 2021 to May 2024, the BJP has not been able to provide substantial relief to the people of West Bengal...Today, it is the day for the voters to give a reply to them. '4 ko jab result aaenge toh jawaab karaara milega'..."

TMC National General Secretary and candidate from Diamond Harbour seat, Abhishek Banerjee shows his inked finger after casting his vote at a polling station.

 Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa cast his vote at a polling booth in Gurdaspur.

SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal casts his vote in Badal village under the Firozpur Lok Sabha constituency.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal casts her vote at a polling booth in Badal village under the Firozpur Lok Sabha constituency.

BJP leader Tarun Chugh cast his vote in Amritsar. "We have been given the right by the Constitution to choose who will rule for the next five years and who will decide the country's strategies. We should all exercise this right. I am feeling very proud and happy that I have come here along with my family to cast vote," said the BJP leader.

Bihar  10.58%
Chandigarh 11.64%
Himachal Pradesh 14.35%
Jharkhand 12.15%
Odisha 7.69%
Punjab 9.64%
Uttar Pradesh 12.94%
West Bengal 12.63%

Polling commenced for six Lok Sabha constituencies and 42 assembly seats in Odisha on Saturday morning, amid tight security, a poll official said. Voting began at 7 am in Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, and Jagatsinghpur Lok Sabha seats, along with the 42 assembly segments that constitute these parliamentary constituencies. Polling will continue till 6 pm as there are no Maoist-hit zones under these Lok Sabha seats, the official added. Approximately 1 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes across 10,882 booths in the fourth and final round of simultaneous elections in the state.

Polling for the final phase of Lok Sabha elections in 13 Uttar Pradesh constituencies that include Varanasi, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term, began at 7 am on Saturday. The state sends 80 members to the Lower House of Parliament and the polling has been spread over all seven election phases. The bypoll for the Duddhi (ST) assembly constituency in Sonbhadra district is also being held on Saturday. Six candidates are contesting from the seat that fell vacant after BJP MLA Ram Dular's disqualification following his conviction in a rape case.

Polling commenced on Saturday morning for eight Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar, along with the by-election to the Agiaon assembly seat, to determine the fate of 134 candidates. Voting began at 7 am in Patna Sahib, Pataliputra, Arrah, Karakat, Jehanabad, Buxar, Nalanda, and Jehanabad Lok Sabha seats and will continue till 6 pm. Over 1.6 crore people in these eight seats are eligible to cast their votes to decide the electoral fate of the candidates, a senior official said.

Voting for three Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand commenced on Saturday, amid tight security, officials said. Polling began at 7 am in Dumka, Rajmahal, and Godda, and will continue till 5 pm. A total of 52 candidates, including eight women, are contesting in this final phase, the state's fourth and the seventh nationwide. Nineteen candidates each are competing in Dumka and Godda, while Rajmahal has 14 contestants.

After casting his vote for the seventh phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024, AAP MP Raghav Chadha said, "Today is the grand festival of India. Every vote by the citizen will decide the direction and condition of the country. I request everyone to exercise their right to vote."

Odisha Police have put in place adequate arrangements for the fourth phase of polling in the state on June 1. Polling will be held in six Parliamentary constituencies -- Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur , Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, and 42 Assembly segments in these constituencies on Saturday. Director General of Police, Arun Kumar Sarangi said that many Assembly segments are sensitive from law and order point of view. He also stated that some incidents of pre-poll violence have been reported in these constituencies but those are not alarming. The DGP noted that police have kept a strict vigil on all the developments in these constituencies to avoid any eventualities. As many as 36,000 police personnel, including 126 companies of Central Armed Police Force, have been deployed for the final phase of polling. Around 21 per cent of the booths out of the 10,882 polling stations are designated as sensitive booths. Four Assembly segments are designated as communally sensitive areas.A

Actor-turned-politician Ravi Kishan is contesting from Gorakhpur, a BJP stronghold and has been with the party for over three decades now and is up against Samajwadi Party's Kajal Nishad.

57 constituencies including 13 in Uttar Pradesh, 13 in Punjab, 9 in West Bengal, 8 in Bihar, 6 in Odisha, 4 in Himachal Pradesh, 3 in Jharkhand and Chandigarh are going for polls in the last phase.