High Voters Turnout Witness In First Phase Of General Elections In India

New Delhi, April 8, IRNA – High turnout of voters witnessed in first phase of India’s Parliamentary elections, began today. Tripura state today witnessed 84 percent polling in one Lok Sabha seat while in Assam 72.5 percent voters cast their ballot in five constituencies as the first phase of the nine-stage general elections ended peacefully. Till 1700 hours IST, when the polling ended, voters were standing in long queues and the polling percentage in the six constituencies of the two northeastern states could witness a rise. ˈWe expect the poll percentage to cross 75 per cent,ˈ Deputy Election Commissioner Alok Shukla told reporters here while briefing on the polling in the five Assam constituencies of Tezpur, Kaliabor, Jorhat, Dibrugarh and Lakhimpur. Assam has 14 Lok Sabha seats and the next phases of polling will be held on April 12 and 24. The poll percentage in Tripura (West) seat, one of the two Lok Sabha constituencies in Tripura, could also see a rise of one or two per cent, said EC Director General Ashish Srivastava. Polling in Tripura (East) seat will be held on April 12. In the 2009 general elections, the whole of Assam had recorded 69.60 percent polling. The poll percentage then in Tripura (West) seat was 86.25 percent. In Assamˈs five constituencies with nearly 64.50 lakh electors, 51 candidates are in the fray. Tripura (West) has 13 candidates. Seeking to bring more transparency and ensuring free and fair elections, the EC did live webcast in 20 polling stations in the first phase. Besides Rs 1.13 crore cash seizure, the authorities in Assam have also confiscated 527 illegal arms, besides nearly a thousand rounds of ammunition. A total of 3.7 lakh litres of liquor was also seized ahead of polls. ˈThe total value of illegal items seized stands at Rs 1.65 crore,ˈ Shukla said. In Tripura (West), live webcast was carried out in five polling stations. A total of 5521 litres of liquor, besides some cash, including Bangladeshi currency, was seized in Tripura. The five-year term of the 15th Lok Sabha (Indian Parliament) is due to expire on 31st May 2014. To constitute 16th Lok Sabha, the General elections started from today across the country and the counting of votes will start on May 16. The Election Commission of India has made comprehensive preparations for conduct of elections to the 16th Lok Sabha in a free, fair and peaceful manner, announced V S Sampath, Chief Election Commissioner at a press conference here today. The high-stake Lok Sabha elections pitting Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi in a virtual presidential-style contest with a number of other PM aspirants thrown in will be held between April 7 and May 12 on nine days, the highest number of phases so far. Counting of votes in all the 543 constituencies involving an electorate of 81.4 crore will be done on May 16. NCT of Delhi with seven seats will have a single day poll on April 10./end