Elections 2019 Phase 4 HIGHLIGHTS: 64% voter turnout recorded as polling ends in 72 constituencies

Lok Sabha Elections 2019 Phase 4 LIVE UPDATES: According to official Election Commission data, the estimated percentage of votes polled in the fourth phase of General Elections was 64 per cent. According to the EC's official app Voter Turnout, Jammu and Kashmir recorded 10.5 per cent voter turnout, while amid violence, West Bengal saw 64 per cent voting by the end of the day.

Reports of EVM malfunctioning in several states and poll boycott in West Bengal's Asansol came to light in the initial hours of the phase 4 polling of the Lok Sabha elections.

A total of 72 Lok Sabha constituencies spread over nine states, mostly in Hindi heartland, went to polls in the fourth phase of the elections on today. An estimated 12.79 crore electorates were eligible to exercise their franchise in 13 seats each in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, five in Bihar, eight in West Bengal, three in Jharkhand, six in Madhya Pradesh, 17 in Maharashtra and six in Odisha. Considerably, crucial states Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan went for polling for the first time in this phase.

Keep refreshing this page to get latest updates on Lok Sabha Elections 2019 Phase 4

ABP News Bureau Last Updated: 29 Apr 2019 09:14 PM

29/04/2019 19:53:43

As per the official data on Election Commission’s Voter Turout App, 61.97% voter turnout was recorded till 7 pm in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019.

29/04/2019 19:30:37

Billionaires and Bollywood stars lined up outside polling stations along with the common folks
Monday in Mumbai, which recorded 51.11 per cent voting, almost similar to the voting percentage of 51.59 in the 2014 polls.

29/04/2019 19:23:08

10.5% turnout in the 4 assembly segments of Anantnag that went to polls today.

29/04/2019 19:22:44

Overall turnout was 57.58 per cent in today's polling in 13 UP constituencies, Chief Electoral Officer told PTI.

29/04/2019 19:20:36

Jet Airways founder and former chairman Naresh Goyal cast his vote in Mumbai on Monday in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019.

29/04/2019 19:19:17

29/04/2019 19:04:37

Tribal dominated seat of Banswara recorded the highest voting percentage at 72.34, followed by Barmer which recorded 72.21 per cent voting. Chittorgarh and Jhalwar-Baran also recorded 71.29 and 70.95 per cent voting.

29/04/2019 19:04:13

Voter turnout of 67.13 per cent was recorded till 6 pm in Rajasthan's 13 Lok Sabha seats which went to polls Monday, an election official told PTI.

29/04/2019 19:03:35

Voting figures in some seats of Madhya Pradesh till 6 pm were as follows: Sidhi- 56.82 per cent, Shahdol- 66.89 per cent, Jabalpur- 64.05 per cent, Mandla 67.09 per cent, Balaghat 70.13 per cent and Chhindwara- 72.95 per cent.

29/04/2019 18:59:38

An average 66.09 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 6 pm across six Lok Sabha seats in
Madhya Pradesh that went to polls Monday, an official told PTI.

29/04/2019 18:55:20

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday lauded Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav for fielding dismissed Border Security Force constable Tej Bahadur Yadav against Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi.

29/04/2019 18:35:09

29/04/2019 18:19:26

Who don't say Vande Mataram, can't worship motherland. My father and grandfather died by banks of Ganga and did not need a grave. But you need three-arm's-length of land. If you don't do it, the country will never forgive you: BJP candidate from Begusarai Giriraj Singh

29/04/2019 18:18:34

According to ANI, Election Commission issues notice to Union Minister and Begusarai (Bihar) BJP candidate Giriraj Singh for a speech delivered on April 24 in GD College, Begusarai.

29/04/2019 18:00:08

29/04/2019 17:59:45

Voting figures in these seats of Madhya Pradesh till 5 pm were as follows: Sidhi- 47.76 per cent, Shahdol- 64.89 per cent, Jabalpur- 64.05 per cent, Mandla 64.54 per cent, Balaghat 66.88 per cent and Chhindwara- 71.71 per cent.

29/04/2019 17:59:02

An average 63 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 pm across six Lok Sabha constituencies in Madhya Pradesh Monday, an official told PTI. The polling began at 7 am, and barring a few
Naxal-affected areas in Balaghat, will continue till 6 pm.

29/04/2019 17:57:27

29/04/2019 17:50:22

A dog with pro-BJP stickers on its body was detained alongwith his master in north Maharashtra's Nandurbar town where polling for the Lok Sabha elections took place on Monday.

29/04/2019 17:44:13

29/04/2019 17:28:00

According to news agency ANI, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) writes to Chief Electoral Officer, Odisha over alleged booth capturing by BJP. The letter states that BJP goons conducted booth capturing in 12 booths of Bari assembly constituency under Jajpur parliamentary constituency while the polling was going on today.

29/04/2019 17:25:32

29/04/2019 17:25:14

Election Commission directs to register FIR against Babul Supriyo, Union Minister & BJP candidate from Asansol LS seat, for allegedly trespassing into booth number 199 and threatening a polling agent and an officer, news agency ANI reported.

29/04/2019 17:18:09

Voters' turnout till 5 pm-

Total - 58.22%

Bihar - 53.67%

Jammu and Kashmir - 9.98%

Madhya Pradesh - 64.53%

Maharashtra - 49.64%

Odisha - 63.57%

Rajasthan - 62.27%

Uttar Pradesh - 52.05%

West Bengal - 76.14%

Jharkhand - 60.55%

29/04/2019 16:55:59

A total 44.26 per cent of 87.74 lakh electorate cast their votes till 3 pm in five Lok Sabha
constituencies in the fourth phase of polling in Bihar on Monday, EC official said.

29/04/2019 16:50:49

29/04/2019 16:50:34

In Kannauj, a representative of Samajwadi Party candidate Dimple Yadav, Guddu Saxena, has complained to the observers that the district administration allegedly was not allowing SP leaders and workers to move out of their houses, PTI reported.

29/04/2019 16:50:08

In Kanpur, BJP workers clashed with police and allegedly threatened Circle Officer, Gwaltoli, Janardan Dubey and his subordinates posted on election duty.

29/04/2019 16:35:57

29/04/2019 16:35:42

An estimated 43.91 voter turnout was recorded till 3 pm in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies of Uttar Pradesh Monday as polling for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in the state was underway.

29/04/2019 16:30:55

Waiting for his turn to cast his vote at a polling station inside a government secondary school that he had attended, the former JNU students' union president said he was excited to be at his alma mater in a new role, reported PTI.

29/04/2019 16:30:18

PI candidate Kanhaiya Kumar on Monday exuded confidence he will come up trumps in his much-talked about electoral debut against nominees of the mightier BJP and the RJD, asserting that people of Begusarai would vote from dil (hearts) and not go by dal (party).

29/04/2019 16:20:16

Below is the list of party wise candidates with self declared criminal cases in Maharashtra in Phase 4. (Image: IANS)

29/04/2019 16:18:14

So far, Nandurbar Lok Sabha constituency in north Maharashtra has recorded the highest polling at 51.96 per cent while Kalyan constituency near Mumbai saw the lowest voter turnout of 33.77 per cent, according to an official statement.

29/04/2019 16:17:46

An average 42.03 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 3 pm in Maharashtra's 17 seats on Monday as polling for the fourth and last phase of Lok Sabha elections is underway, PTI reported.

29/04/2019 16:16:17

Samajwadi Party has also alleged that in at at least two polling booths the Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail machine showed the voting for the BJP when the ballot was cast for the SP.

29/04/2019 16:15:45

According to a report by news agency PTI, Akhilesh Yadav led Samajwadi Party on Monday urged the Election Commission to remove Uttar Pradesh's police chief OP Singh from the post alleging he was 'favouring' the ruling BJP and affecting elections.

29/04/2019 16:01:46

29/04/2019 15:56:14

Voters' turnout till 3 pm-

Total - 49.53%

Bihar - 44.23%

Jammu and Kashmir - 8.42%

Madhya Pradesh - 55.22%

Maharashtra - 41.15%

Odisha - 51.54%

Rajasthan - 54.16%

Uttar Pradesh - 44.16%

West Bengal - 66.01%

Jharkhand - 56.37%

29/04/2019 15:41:29

According to news agency ANI, Samajwadi Party (SP) has changed its candidate from Varanasi Lok Sabha Constituency. The party has now given the ticket to Tej Bahadur Yadav (BSF constable who was dismissed from service after he had released video last year on quality of food served to soldiers). Earlier, SP's Shalini Yadav had filed her nomination from Varanasi.

29/04/2019 15:30:05

29/04/2019 15:29:32

Veteran singer Asha Bhosle, actors Hrithik Roshan, Vidya Balan, Emraan Hashmi, Kangana Ranaut, Varun Dhawan, Sanjay Dutt and wife Manyata, writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar, Gulzar, filmmaker Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra and Prem Chopra also voted during the fourth phase elections.

29/04/2019 15:28:49

Several Bollywood stars, including Rekha, Madhuri Dixit, Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra, and Kareena Kapoor Khan, cast their vote as Mumbai went to polls in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra.

29/04/2019 14:54:14

29/04/2019 14:52:52

In a tragic news report, three government employees who were on election duty during the ongoing fourth phase voting of Lok Sabha Election died in separate incidents. One of the three officials was a woman.

29/04/2019 14:40:12

In a recent update by news agency IANS, the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party led by Shivpal Singh Yadav has announced its support to Congress candidate Acharya Pramod Krishnan in Lucknow.

29/04/2019 14:25:38

Based on the available evidence and material facts in the matter before EC, hereby, strongly condemns the impugned statements made by her (on 14 April in Sultanpur's Sarkoda village) and warns her not to repeat such misconduct in future: EC in a letter to Union Min Maneka Gandhi

29/04/2019 14:16:52

Voters' turnout till 2 pm-

Total - 38.63%

Bihar - 37.71%

Jammu and Kashmir - 6.66%

Madhya Pradesh - 43.44%

Maharashtra - 29.94%

Odisha - 35.79%

Rajasthan - 44.62%

Uttar Pradesh - 34.42%

West Bengal - 52.37%

Jharkhand - 44.90%

29/04/2019 14:01:31

29/04/2019 13:42:40

29/04/2019 13:40:26

29/04/2019 13:38:15

29/04/2019 13:37:40

29/04/2019 13:36:34

29/04/2019 13:09:59

Voters' turnout till 1 pm-

Total - 26.40%

Bihar - 18.26%

Jammu and Kashmir - 6.47%

Madhya Pradesh - 31.59%

Maharashtra - 19.77%

Odisha - 21.16%

Rajasthan - 31.95%

Uttar Pradesh - 25.32%

West Bengal - 36.30%

Jharkhand - 33.14%

Source: Voter Turnout (EC)

29/04/2019 12:54:38

29/04/2019 12:55:30

29/04/2019 12:54:54

29/04/2019 12:31:42

Maharashtra; 3 poll staffers stuck in school lift, rescued

A day after six people on election duty were rescued from a lift at a school in Maharashtra's Thane district, three more poll staffers got stuck in the same elevator as it malfunctioned again on Monday, an official said.

The three poll staffers were using the lift in Sahakar Prasarak Mandal School at Kalwa town here in the morning when it got stuck on the building's fourth floor after developing a technical snag, Thane civic body's regional disaster management cell chief Santosh Kadam said.
The fire brigade personnel rushed to the spot and managed to rescue those stuck in the lift after around 15 minutes, he said.

The lift was being used by the poll staff to reach the classrooms where the election material was kept, Kadam said.

On Sunday, six poll staffers got stuck in the school's lift for around 40 minutes before being rescued, he said.

29/04/2019 12:27:36

Stone pelting near polling booths in J-K's Kulgam

Several incidents of stone pelting took place Monday in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir where polling is underway for election to the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency, police said.

Isolated incidents of stone pelting near polling stations have been reported from various parts of Kulgam district but the situation is under control due to timely action of security forces, a police official said.

He said there were no reports of anyone getting hurt in the stone pelting incidents so far.

The Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency is spread over four districts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama with 16 assembly segments.

The Lok Sabha polls to this constituency are being held in three phases due to security reasons.

Anantnag district went to polls on 23 April, while voting in Pulwama and Shopian districts will take place on 6 May.

The Election Commission has curtailed the polling duration for Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency by two hours following a request from the state police to this effect. The revised polling timing is from 7 am to 4 pm.

There are 18 candidates in the fray for Anantnag constituency, including PDP president and former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti

The Congress has fielded its state president Ghulam Ahmad Mir, while former High Court judge Hasnain Masoodi is contesting on the National Conference ticket.

29/04/2019 11:52:39

29/04/2019 11:52:04

29/04/2019 11:29:53

Voters' turnout till 11 am-

Total - 23.17%

Bihar - 18.26%

Jammu and Kashmir - 3.74%

Madhya Pradesh - 26.82%

Maharashtra - 15.84%

Odisha - 19.61%

Rajasthan - 28.58%

Uttar Pradesh - 21.18%

West Bengal - 34.71%

Jharkhand - 29.21%

29/04/2019 11:07:38

Polling was briefly hampered at three booths in Munger, two in Darbhanga and three in Begusarai due to glitches in EVMs, which were rectified. People boycotted voting at a polling station in Rajwara village of Teghra assembly segment in Begusarai lok Sabha constituency to protest lack of road connectivity, an Election Commission source said.

29/04/2019 11:07:15

Technical glitches in EVMs delayed polling in 60 booths, but it resumed after snags were rectified.

29/04/2019 11:05:34

An Independent candidate in Madhya Pradesh's Balaghat Lok Sabha seat alleged that his vehicle was set afire by Naxals on Monday, officials said. A case was registered by police in this connection and the state election office was also probing the incident, they said.

29/04/2019 10:42:24

0.91% polling recorded in Kulgam in first 2 hours

Less than one per cent of the over 3.45 lakh electorate came out to vote in the first two hours of polling in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir -- part of the Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency -- on Monday amid stringent security arrangements, officials said.

The voting in the second leg of the three-phased schedule for the Lok Sabha seat would decide the fate of 18 candidates, including former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti.

The overall poll percentage in district Kulgam at 9.00 am was 0.91 per cent, the officials said here.

They said the polling so far has been peaceful in the militancy-infested district in the restive south Kashmir.

Polling will end at 4.00 pm, instead of usual 6.00 pm, following a request by the state police to the Election Commission.

29/04/2019 10:41:09

Less than 3 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 9 a.m. on Monday in the second phase of polls in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag Lok Sabha seat, an election official said.

Voting began at 7 a.m. in Kulgam district's four assembly segments -- Noorabad, Devsar, Kulgam and Homshalibugh.

At the Laram polling station in Homshalibugh, voting was delayed for 40 minutes due to a faulty Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) which poll authorities said was being replaced.

A total of 433 polling stations have been set up at 244 locations.

There are 3,45,486 voters in the district. Twenty-one polling stations have been set up for over 3,000 migrants voters in Udhampur, Jammu and Delhi.

29/04/2019 10:27:48

According to official Election Commission data, the estimated percentage of votes polled in Bihar till 10 am was 10.42 percent. According to the EC's official app Voter Turnout, Jammu and Kashmir recorded 0.68% till 10am. While amid violence, West Bengal recorded, 16.89% voter turnout.

29/04/2019 10:28:20

Voters' turnout till 10 am-

Total - 10.42%

Bihar - 10.76%

Jammu and Kashmir - 0.68%

Madhya Pradesh - 11.45%

Maharashtra - 6.66%

Odisha - 8.34%

Rajasthan - 12.22%

Uttar Pradesh - 9.87%

West Bengal - 16.89%

Jharkhand - 12.00%

29/04/2019 09:56:27

Actor Priyanka Chopra cast her vote today. She later took to Twitter and said, 'This is the moment that matters. Every vote is a voice that counts.'

29/04/2019 09:50:48

Voters' turnout till 9.30 am-

Total - 10.72%

Bihar - 10.76%

Jammu and Kashmir - 0.68%

Madhya Pradesh - 11.39%

Maharashtra - 6.29%

Odisha - 8.34%

Rajasthan - 12.26%

Uttar Pradesh - 9.72%

West Bengal - 16.61%

Jharkhand - 12.00%

29/04/2019 09:44:25

Mumbai: Actor Madhuri Dixit casts her vote at a polling booth in Juhu.

29/04/2019 09:43:36

Mumbai: NCP Chief Sharad Pawar after casting his vote at polling booth 31 in Tardeo.

29/04/2019 09:44:02

Mumbai: NCP Chief Sharad Pawar after casting his vote at polling booth 31 in Tardeo.

29/04/2019 09:41:33

Mumbai: NCP Chief Sharad Pawar after casting his vote at polling booth 31 in Tardeo.

29/04/2019 09:38:57

West Bengal: BJP MP candidate from Asansol, Babul Supriyo's car vandalised in Asansol. A TMC polling agent says, there is no BJP polling agent here.

29/04/2019 09:36:44

Union Minister and BJP candidate from Asansol Babul Supriyo said, 'I will myself take the central forces to that polling station. It is very good that people in West Bengal are aware and they want central forces so that they can cast their vote. This is why Mamata Banerjee is scared.'

29/04/2019 09:35:26

Villagers boycott polls at Jemua's polling booth number 222&226 in Asansol due to absence of central forces at the polling station. Polling has been suspended at the polling station as voters are protesting.

29/04/2019 09:32:55

At several places, the technical faults in EVM have hampered the 4th phase of polling today.

Voting today began late at booth number 286/184 and 286/185 in Bolpur, West Bengal, after a glitch in EVM was detected. Meanwhile the same happened in Mumbai where the voting got delayed at booth number 162 of Malad West in Mumbai after a glitch in EVM was detected.

29/04/2019 09:29:23

Polling is underway for phase 4 of Lok Sabha elections Monday. Here are some interesting nuggets about this phase.

* 72 Lok Sabha constituencies across 9 states headed for polls.

* Over 12.79 crore voters to decide fate of 961candidates

* Over 1.40 lakh polling booths in place for smooth conduct of polls

*Anantnag Parliamentary Cconstituencyin Jammu & Kashmiris going to polls divided in Phase III, Phase IV & Phase V, the only such PC in the country.

*The four districts to be covered in the Anantnag constituency are Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama.

In Phase 4, only Kulgam district of Anantnag PC is going for polls.

29/04/2019 08:40:35

Mumbai: Congress MP candidate from Mumbai North, Urmila Mataondkar casts her vote at polling booth number 190 in Bandra.

29/04/2019 08:39:35

Lok Sabha Elections 2019 :Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath casts his vote at polling booth number 17 in Shikarpur, Chhindwara.

29/04/2019 08:34:00

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged people to come out in large numbers to participate in the largest festival of democracy. A total of 72 seats are going to polls in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha polls.

29/04/2019 08:39:28

Lok Sabha Elections 2019 :Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath casts his vote at polling booth number 17 in Shikarpur, Chhindwara.

29/04/2019 08:34:34

Lok Sabha Elections 2019 :Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath casts his vote at polling booth number 17 in Shikarpur, Chhindwara.

29/04/2019 08:24:46

Mumbai: BJP sitting MP Paresh Rawal & his wife Swaroop Sampat cast their vote at polling booth number 250-256 at Jamna Bai School in Vile Parle.

29/04/2019 08:25:24

Mumbai: BJP sitting MP Paresh Rawal & his wife Swaroop Sampat cast their vote at polling booth number 250-256 at Jamna Bai School in Vile Parle.

29/04/2019 08:21:59

Google today dedicated doodle to the fourth phase of India's mammoth general election. The doodle, like on the first three phases of the Lok Sabha election, featured an inked finger, which when clicked led users to a page explaining the voting procedure. It further leads to instructions on how to vote.

Read more to know

29/04/2019 07:56:48

Mumbai:BJP MP candidate from UP's Gorakhpur, Ravi Kishan casts his vote at a polling booth in Goregaon.

29/04/2019 07:56:04

Mumbai: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das casts his vote at polling booth number 40 & 41 at Peddar Road.

29/04/2019 07:48:16

As the 4th phase of voting began for Lok Sabha elections in 72 constituencies for 9 states, all eyes are on battle between Bharatiya Janta Party candidate Giriraj Singh and CPI candidate Kanhaiya Kumar who are contesting from Begusarai seat in Bihar.

Read to know more

29/04/2019 07:44:53

Mumbai: Veteran actor Rekha casts her vote at polling booth number 283 in Bandra.

29/04/2019 07:34:31

Mumbai: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das waits in queues to cast his vote at polling booth number 40 & 41 at Peddar Road.

29/04/2019 07:29:11

Visuals from a polling station in Asansol, West Bengal: 8 parliamentary constituencies in the state are voting in the fourth phase

29/04/2019 07:25:41

Rajasthan: Former Rajasthan CM and BJP leader Vasundhara Raje Scindia cast her vote at polling booth number 33 in Jhalawar.

29/04/2019 07:17:58

Mumbai: Anil Ambani casts his vote at voting centre number 216 at GD Somani School in Cuffe Parade.

29/04/2019 07:14:44

Also Read: 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Phase 4: From Giriraj Singh to Milind Deora, a look at key candidates in the fray

29/04/2019 07:13:19

As the fourth of the mega seven-phase electoral exercise kicked off, this covers the remaining 17 constituencies in Maharashtra, including Mumbai's six seats, and the six in Odisha, as well as 13 in Uttar Pradesh, five in Bihar, and eight in West Bengal.

Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh will have their first phase of polls with voting in 13, 3 and 6 constituencies, respectively.

Voting will also be held in the second phase of the staggered polling in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag constituency.

29/04/2019 07:11:09

Bihar: Union Minister and sitting MP from Nawada, Giriraj Singh, cast his vote at polling booth number 33 in Barahiya of Lakhisarai district.

29/04/2019 07:09:41

Mumbai: Voters queue outside polling booth number 40 & 41 in South Mumbai parliamentary constituency.

29/04/2019 07:08:30

Over 12.79 crore voters will decide the fate of 945 candidates today.

29/04/2019 07:00:59

Voting begins for fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019 in 72 constituencies, across 9 states.

29/04/2019 06:59:26

Madhya Pradesh: Visuals of preparation from polling booth number 17 in Shikarpur of Chhindwara parliamentary constituency. Voting for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will begin at 7 AM today.

29/04/2019 06:58:22

Mumbai: Preparations are underway at polling station 283 in Hill Road, Bandra West. Voting for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will begin at 7 AM today.

29/04/2019 06:53:51

With the end of the fourth round of polling, over 61 crore of the electorate would have taken part in the democratic exercise, the largest in the world.

29/04/2019 06:52:32

In the fourth phase, the BJP will be defending 45 of the seats it won in the 2014 Lok Sabha battle -- 13 in Rajasthan, 12 in Uttar Pradesh, five in Madhya Pradesh, three in Bihar, three in Jharkhand, eight in Maharashtra and one in West Bengal.

In Maharashtra, all the remaining nine were won by the Shiv Sena while in Bihar, the remaining two seats were bagged by BJP's ally Lok Janshakti Party. The Congress got only two -- one in Madhya Pradesh and one in West Bengal.

Among other parties, the Biju Janata Dal won all six in Odisha, the Trinamool Congress six in West Bengal and the Samawadi Party one in Uttar Pradesh.

29/04/2019 06:51:38

A total of 72 Lok Sabha constituencies spread over nine states will go to polls in the fourth phase of the elections in next 10 minutes.

Preparations are underway at the various polling stations across the constituencies.

Background

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: The fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019, which started today on as many as 72 parliamentary constituencies spread across 9 states, garnered 64 per cent overall voter turnout. People of the country exercised their franchise in some seats of Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Voting on all 72 constituencies began at 7 am and concluded at 6 pm at all polling booths. A total of 943 candidates were in fray for the fourth phase of General Elections.

The Election Commission had installed 1.40 lakh polling booths/stations and had also made elaborate security arrangements. In the first three phases, voting has been held in 302 Lok Sabha constituencies, and 168 more seats will go to polls in the last three phases.

The fate of these candidates, including Union ministers Giriraj Singh, Babul Supriyo, Subhash Bhamre, SS Ahluwalia of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and former Union ministers Salman Khurshid and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury of the Congress party, has been decided by around 12.79 core eligible voters in the fourth phase.

Among other key contestants in the fray were Kanhaiya Kumar (CPI), Dimple Yadav (Samajwadi Party), Priya Dutt (Congress), Urmila Matondkar (Congress), Baijayant Panda (BJP), Satabdi Roy (TMC), Milind Deora (Congress) and Upendra Kushwaha (RLSP).

The stakes were high for the ruling BJP and its allies as it had swept 56 of these seats in 2014, leaving just two for the Congress and the rest for other opposition parties such as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) bagging six seats each. Voting took place on 17 seats in Maharashtra, 13 each in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, eight in West Bengal, six each in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha, five in Bihar, three in Jharkhand and a part of the Anantnag constituency in Jammu and Kashmir.