High Voter Turnout Marks Peaceful Polling in Jharkhand's Second Election Phase

A voter turnout of 61.90% was recorded in three Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand, with Hazaribag leading at 63.66%. The polling, which took place peacefully, saw participation from 58.34 lakh voters across Chatra, Hazaribag, and Koderma. The phase also witnessed diverse voter demographics, including elderly and first-time voters.

A voter turnout of 61.90 per cent was recorded till the end of polling at 5 pm on Monday in the three Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand, officials said.

Voting had commenced at 7 am in Chatra, Hazaribag, and Koderma constituencies as part of the second phase of elections in the eastern state. It was peaceful in all the three constituencies, officials said.

Hazaribag Lok Sabha seat registered the highest voter turnout of 63.66 per cent, followed by Koderma (61.60 per cent) and Chatra (60.26 per cent). The overall voter turnout in these three constituencies was 61.90 per cent.

Among the voters in Hazaribag was 81-year-old Abhijit Sen, who exercised his franchise at polling booth no 153 in Hazaribag town.

''From voting during the time of first Prime Minister Pt Jawaharlal Nehru to present PM Modi, I have voted in all the Lok Sabha and assembly elections since 1962,'' Sen claimed.

First-time voter Aadya Chandra, 18, said she was happy to participate in the festival of democracy. Similarly, 91-year-old Shankar Lal Chaudhary, who voted at Koderma, also expressed his happiness to take part in the process. This phase involved 22 candidates in Chatra, 15 in Koderma, and 17 in Hazaribag.

In Hazaribag, villagers boycotted polling at booths 183 and 184 in Kusumbha village under Katkamdag due to unmet demands for a bridge.

About 58.34 lakh voters, including 28.35 lakh women, are eligible to vote in these constituencies.

Chief Electoral Officer K Ravi Kumar said this phase covered seven districts and three parliamentary constituencies.

Kumar said there were 6,705 booths, including 6,130 in rural areas. Among these, 73 were managed by women, 13 by persons with disabilities, and 13 by youths.

Chatra constituency has 16.89 lakh voters, including 8.27 lakh women, with 1,899 booths. Koderma has 22.05 lakh voters, including 10.65 lakh women, with 2,552 booths. Hazaribag has 19.39 lakh voters, including 9.42 lakh women, and 2,254 booths.

The BJP has fielded Manish Jaiswal from Hazaribag and Kalicharan Singh from Chatra. The Congress has nominated KN Tripathi from Chatra and Jai Prakash Bhai Patel from Hazaribag. CPI (ML) Liberation has given ticket to Bagodar MLA Vinod Kumar Singh from Koderma.

BJP Koderma nominee Annapurna Devi promised to focus on employment generation and educational improvements after winning the polls.

Former Jharkhand chief minister and BJP state president Babulal Marandi urged voters to participate in the democratic process, predicting that the NDA would win all 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, along with the Gandey assembly by-election.

Chatra BJP candidate Kalicharan Singh also exuded confidence that he will win the seat.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)