Patna: Nearly half of the electorate in six Lok Sabha constituencies of Bihar cast their ballot Thursday even as two troopers headed for poll duty were killed in a landmine blast.
"About 45 percent of the electorate has voted. The polling was slow in the early hours, but picked up later. The final figure of vote percentage will come after the end of polling," Additional Chief Electoral Officer R. Lakshaman said.
A little over 94 lakh voters are eligible to choose from among 80 candidates, including 10 women, who are in the fray in Maoist-affected constituencies.
Prominent candidates in the fray are Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar for Sasaram, Bihar assembly Speaker Uday Narain Choudhary from Jamui, former Kerala governor and ex-Delhi Police chief Nikhil Kumar from Aurangabad, actor-turned-politician Chirag Paswan from Jamui and former union minister Kanti Singh from Karakat.
The state witnessed violence during the poll process.
