The stage is set for the fourth phase of polling for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections tomorrow. Voting will be held in 96 Lok Sabha seats spread over nine states and one Union Territory. 25 seats of Andhra Pradesh, 17 seats of Telangana, 13 seats of Uttar Pradesh, 11 seats of Maharashtra, eight seats each of Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, 5 seats of Bihar, four seats each of Jharkhand and Odisha along with one seat of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will go to polls in this phase.
The voting will begin at 7 AM and end at 6 PM. The commission said, polling time in certain assembly segments of 17 Parliamentary Constituencies of Telangana has been increased to enhance voter participation.
Over 17.70 crore voters, including 8.97 crore Male and 8.73 crore Female voters, are eligible to cast their votes in this phase. A total of one thousand 717 candidates are in the fray for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections. The fates of several prominent candidates will be sealed in the EVMs in this phase. Union Ministers and BJP leaders Giriraj Singh, Arjun Munda, G Kishan Reddy, Ajay Kumar Mishra, JDU’s Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Akhilesh Yadav of Samajwadi party, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, TMC’s Mahua Moitra and Shatrughan Sinha, and Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM are among the prominent candidates in this fray. AIR correspondent reports that the Election Commission is all geared up for the fourth phase of General Elections.
In Telangana, over 3 crore 32 lakh 32 thousand electors including 1.67 crore women will exercise their franchise in all 17 Lok Sabha constituencies and one Assembly by-election tomorrow. The polling will commence at 7AM and continue till 6PM in the evening except in 13 left-wing extremism affected Assembly segments. In these 13 segments, polling will conclude at 4PM. A triangular fight prevailed between three major parties BJP, BRS and Congress. Left parties have extended support to the Congress except in Bhongir where CPIM is having a friendly fight. BSP is contesting in 15 seats and MIM in one seat.
A total 525 candidates including 50 women and 68 from major parties and 286 independents are in the fray for Lok Sabha seats.
From Secunderabad Cantonment, 15 candidates are in the fray for the by-poll.
A total 35 thousand 809 polling stations and 453 auxiliary polling stations have been set up across the state and about 4 lakh personnel including security forces have been deployed on poll duty. Our correspondent says the poll authorities are using 3 ballot units at each polling station in 7 constituencies where the number of candidates is more than 32.
About 3 lakh poll personnel who are on poll duty have left for polling stations across Telangana. They have been sent in vehicles this time to the polling stations for smooth transport of the huge poll material and also to provide comfortable travel to the poll personnel. The poll parties in 7 constituencies where more than 32 candidates are in the fray have carried three ballot units for each polling station. Similarly, two ballot units are required for 9 constituencies where the number of candidates is more than 16. The highest number of 45 candidates are in the fray in Secunderabad while the lowest number of 12 are in Adilabad. The mock polling will be held as early as 5.30AM tomorrow. The poll authorities have also set up auxiliary polling stations at 36 remote and hilly areas with only 10-50 voters. In Hyderabad, 46 lakh electors will exercise their franchise at over 3900 polling stations in Secunderabad and Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituencies.
While BRS wants to reaffirm its position in the state after a failure in last year’s Assembly election, BJP is looking at gaining in Telangana for scoring for the third term. Congress wants to repeat the results of Assembly elections. All eyes are on Secunderabad and Hyderabad as Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy seeking re-election from Secunderabad where two more sitting MLAs, Danam Nagender of the Congress and Padmarao Goud from BRS, are in contest. Asaduddin Owaisi of the AIMIM is seeking fifth consecutive election from Hyderabad. And BJP’s Kompella Madhavi Lata is making all out efforts to wrest the seat for BJP. Two more BJP sitting MPs Bandi Sanjay is contesting from Karimnagar while Aravind Dharmapuri from Nizamabad. Other prominent BJP leaders seeking election to the Lok Sabha this time include E Rajender from Malkajgiri, Kompella Madhavi Lata from Hyderabad, Raghunanadan Rao from Medak, D K Aruna from Mahabubnagar, BB Patil from Zaheerabad, Boor Narsaiah Goud from BHongir and Konda Vishweswar Reddy from Chevella. Sitting MP Ranjit Reddy is contesting from Chevella from Congress while other prominent persons contesting from the Congress include Ch Vamshichand Reddy from Mahabubnagar, Patnam Sunita Mahender Reddy from Malkajgiri, former Minister Danam Nagender from Secunderabad, former MP Mallu Ravi from Nagarkurnool, Kadiyama Kavya from Warangal, former Central Minister Balaram Naik from Mahabubabad. Sitting BRS MP from Khammam Nama Nageswara Rao and party another MP Maloth Kavith from Mahabubabad are seeking re-election. Former state minister Koppula Easwar of the BRS is in the fray from Peddapalli.
All arrangements have been made for the Lok Sabha election in Four Lok Sabha Constituencies of Jharkhand which will go to polls in the Fourth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections tomorrow. Voting in Palamu, Khunti, Singhbhum and Lohardaga Lok Sabha constituencies will take place tomorrow from 7 AM to 5 PM. Khunti, Singhbhum and Lohardaga are reserved seats for Scheduled Tribes while Palamu is a reserved seat for Scheduled Castes.
Tomorrow eight Lok Sabha seats will go under polls in West Bengal under the fourth phase of General Election to the Lok Sabha 2024. More than 1 crore 40 thousand electors will decide the fate of 75 candidates including 16 women candidates. Total 5 districts of West Bengal will be under this fourth phase.
Votes will be taken in more than 15 thousand polling stations including more than 3,000 critical booths from 7am. There will be 579 companies of Central forces and 30 thousand and 9 state police personnel. Adequate number of Quick Response Teams and heavy radio flying squads will be deployed to conduct free and fair elections.
