50 per cent turnout in 3rd phase

New Delhi, Apr 30 (PTI) An estimated 50 per cent of
the 14.4 crore electorate Thursday exercised their franchise
in the third phase of India's parliamentary polls in nine
states and two centrally administered territories, which
passed off by and large peacefully barring stray violence in
eastern states Bihar and West Bengal.

The electoral fate of political heavyweights Congress
President Sonia Gandhi, BJP's prime ministerial nominee L K
Advani, former prime minister and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)
chief H D Deve Gowda, Communist Party of India's (CPI) Gurudas
Dasgupta and Communist Party of India-Marxist's (CPI-M)
Basudeb Acharya and senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh were
decided in the third phase that covers 107 constituencies.

The 14 constituencies in West Bengal, where the
polling was held for the first time in this election, recorded
the highest turnout of 64 per cent followed by southern state
Karnataka (57), western states Gujarat (50) and Maharashtra
(45 per cent).

The turnout in Mumbai, the country's financial hub,
was estimated at 45 per cent as the metropolis witnessed the
first election six months after the November 26 terror
attacks.

The lowest turnout of 25 per cent was in Anantnag
constituency in northernmost state Jammu and Kashmir where the
separatists had called for given a poll boycott call.

With the completion of the third phase, the voters
have given their verdict in 372 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats.
Two more phases are to be held on May 7 and 13 before counting
of votes is taken up on May 16.

The voters' response in the first two phases was at
around 60 per cent.

The polling in the elections to the 32-member state
assembly in eastern state Sikkim drew a 64 per cent turnout.

Maoists exploded a landmine near a booth at Biramdih
in West Bengal's Purulia district, injuring two Central
paramilitary force jawans.

Twelve people, including a policeman, in skirmishes
between rival groups in Bihar. Police fired in the air when
voters tried to storm three booths at Forbesganj and Araria
Lok Sabha constituencies.

Notwithstanding the call for poll boycott by Maoists,
polling in naxal-hit areas was by and large peaceful,
Additional Director General of Bihar Police (Headquarters)
said.

Voters did not turn up in 23 polling stations under
Dharara police station where Maoists gave a poll boycott call.

Low turnout of voters was reported in 1,000 booths in
Maoist-infested Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore districts
of West Bengal. Pro and anti-poll activists clashed in
Purulia.

Thirteen per cent turnout was recorded in 49 booths in
troubled Lalgarh where booths were shifted from areas in
accordance with the agreement reached with tribal leader
Chhatradhar Mahato whose organisation resisted police entry
into their areas for the last six months.

The third phase saw completion of the polling process
in Gujarat, where 26 Lok Sabha seats are up for grabs,
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, and centrally
administered territories Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and
Diu.

In Uttar Pradesh, where 15 constituencies went to poll
Thursday, the voter turnout was put at 45 per cent while
Bihar's 11 constituencies, which put to test the
newly-stitched alliance of RJD and LJP, registered 48 per cent
response. PTI