New Delhi, 1 June

A voter turnout of 58.34 per cent was recorded till 5pm on Saturday in the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission (EC) said. Polling is being held for 57 constituencies spread across seven states and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, including Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha.

The voting is being held in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha and three in Jharkhand, besides Chandigarh. Polling for the remaining 42 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and bypolls to six Assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh are also taking place simultaneously.

Till 3pm, the approximate polling percentage was 49.68, according to the EC's voter-turnout app. A voter turnout of nearly 60.14 per cent was recorded in Jharkhand. Uttar Pradesh logged a polling percentage of 46.83, West Bengal 58.46, Bihar 42.95 and Himachal Pradesh 58.41. Punjab recorded a voter turnout of 46.38 per cent till 3 pm while Chandigarh registered a voting percentage of 52.61. Odisha recorded around 49.77 per cent voting.

Sporadic incidents of violence were reported from West Bengal as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various parts of the Jadavpur and Diamond Harbour constituencies. Clashes broke out between supporters of the TMC, ISF and BJP in Jadavpur as the parties alleged that their polling agents were stopped from entering booths.

A confrontation erupted in Bhangar within the Jadavpur constituency between Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Indian Secular Front (ISF) supporters, with allegations of crude bombs being hurled from both sides. Police intervention ensued, triggering protests as both factions accused each other.

To quell the situation, security personnel resorted to a lathicharge and seized several crude bombs. The voting began at 7am. Voters were seen standing in queues in front of polling booths since early in the morning among severe heatwave conditions in several parts of the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to people to exercise their franchise. "Together, let's make our democracy more vibrant and participative," the prime minister said on X.

"Today is the final phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. As 57 seats across 8 states and UTs go to the polls, calling upon the voters to turnout in large numbers and vote. I hope young and women voters exercise their franchise in record numbers," he added.

Other prominent candidates among the 904 in the fray are Union minister Anurag Thakur, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti and actor Kangana Ranaut.

More than 10.06 crore citizens, including nearly 5.24 crore men, 4.82 crore women and 3,574 third-gender electors, are eligible to vote in this phase.

Saturday's voting will mark the end of the marathon polling process that began on April 19. The assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim also went to polls. The counting of votes will be taken up on June 4. In Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, the counting for the Assembly polls will be held on June 2.

According to the EC's guidelines, television channels and news outlets will be able to run exit poll data and its results after 6:30 pm.