LS Polls 2019 Phase 1 voting HIGHLIGHTS: 61% voter turnout in T'gana, 80% in Andhra, 56% in Maha

Background

New Delhi: Polling for the first phase of election in seven Lok Sabha seats in 91 Lok Sabha constituencies across 20 states and Union Territories. In the first phase, People will vote for all parliamentary constituencies in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Telangana.

Elections for all 25 Lok Sabha and 175 assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh will be held simultaneously on April 11.

In Telangana, elections will be held on all 17 seats in the first phase.The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti is hoping to sweep the polls in alliance with Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM, who is aiming for a fourth consecutive win from the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat.

In eight western Uttar Pradesh constituencies the ruling BJP will clash with the newly-formed SP-BSP-RLD alliance.

Polling in Uttarkhand's five Lok Sabha seats will be completed on April 11.

In Odisha four Lok Sabha and 28 assembly seats, including several naxal-hit areas, are going to polls.

In Assam, Tezpur, Kaliabor, Jorhat, Dibrugarh and Lakhimpur constituencies will vote in the first phase.

Seven seats in Maharashtra, four in Bihar and two each in West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya and  Arunachal Pradesh will see polling in the first phase.

Lone Lok Sabha seats going to polls on April 11 include Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur, Chhattisgarh Nagaland, Sikkim, Andaman and Nicobar, and Lakshadweep.

19:57 PM (IST)  •  11 Apr 2019

There have been some incidents where EVMs have been damaged. 6 incidents in Andhra Pradesh, 5 in Arunachal Pradesh, 1 in Bihar, 2 in Manipur and 1 in West Bengal: Election Commission

19:56 PM (IST)  •  11 Apr 2019

J&K: Army troops deployed in Siachen & along the LoC cast their vote. Election Commission had provided the facility to the troops deployed in remote areas to download ballot papers online,vote&forward the ballot papers to their respective Electoral Returning Officers through post pic.twitter.com/oleJmkHshr

— ANI (@ANI) April 11, 2019

19:56 PM (IST)  •  11 Apr 2019

Voters in great number fearlessly used their franchise in Shyamgiri (in Bastar's Dantewada district) polling station. Turnout was 77% in this polling station, Election Commission official said during a press conference.

19:55 PM (IST)  •  11 Apr 2019

Voter turnout: Sikkim (1 seat) - 69%, Mizoram (1 seat) - 60%, Nagaland (1 seat) - 78%, Manipur (1 seat) - 78.2%, Tripura (1 seat) - 81.8%, Assam (5 seats) - 68%, West Bengal (2 seats) - 81%. Final turnout is expected to rise.

19:55 PM (IST)  •  11 Apr 2019

Voter turnout: Andaman & Nicobar Islands (1 seat) - 70.67%, Andhra Pradesh (25 seats) - 66%, Chhattisgarh (1 seat) - 56%, Telangana (17 seats) - 60%, Uttarakhand (5 seats) - 57.85%, Jammu & Kashmir (2 seats) - 54.49%. Final turnout is expected to rise.