Phase-1 of the polling in Uttar Pradesh ended at 6 pm on February 10, with 61.46% of voters turning up in 58 Assembly constituencies across 11 districts. According to the election commission, there were some reports of EVM technical snags at a few places, but the voting process went smoothly for the most part.
Percentage turnout in various constituencies
Till 5pm, Agra recorded 56.61% polling, Aligarh 57.25%, Baghpat 61.35%, Bulandshahr 60,52%, Gautam Buddh Nagar 54.77%, Ghaziabad 54.77%, Hapur 60.50%, Mathura 58.51%, Meerut 58.52%, Muzaffarnagar 62.14% and Shamli 61.78%, states an EC report as per Firstpost.
Breaking down numbers
About 623 candidates, 73 of whom are women, will be awaiting results in the first phase. Of the total 2.28 crore voters, 1.24 crore men and 1.04 crore women were eligible to vote in the first phase. The state ministers whose fate is to be seen are Kamal Kant Sharma, Suresh Rana, Sandeep Singh, Kapil Dev Agarwal, Atul Garg and Chowdhury Lakshmi Narain. The campaigning for the first phase, out of seven for the state, ended on Tuesday evening.
Minor Clashes and other exciting events
A few minor skirmishes were reported between supporters of BJP leader VK Singh and Congress leader Rajan Kant. It was alleged that the former had addressed media persons and started talking about the work done by the BJP within the premises of a polling station. However, security personnel intervened, and the situation was diffused.
Another exciting news came from Bulandshahr, where a groom came to the Char Khamba polling station to vote right before his marriage procession in the Sadar assembly segment. Balram, the groom, reached the polling station on his bicycle to vote. In Mathura, the voters voted despite a dense fog enveloping the city early morning when the polling first began. However, the visibility did get better later on.
Something encouraging to note is that Asha Singh, the mother of a rape survivor in Unnao, who had won her legal battle against former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, also contested the polls. She said she wanted to ensure justice for survivors of such heinous crimes. “Priyanka Gandhi wanted me to fight the election, but it could not happen because I am not 25 years of age. So she gave the ticket to my mother,” said her daughter when asked about the decision, according to PTI.
Regions in the first phase of polling are believed to be Jat-dominated, where the farmers’ protest was most active.
When asked about the minor technical snags in EVMs, Additional Chief Election Officer(ACEO) BD Ram Tiwari, as per Money Control, said, “There were reports of a technical error in EVMs at some places.” However, he added that the faulty EVMs were replaced as soon as the complaints came in. While responding to the Samajwadi party’s allegation that poor voters were not allowed to exercise their voting rights in Dundukheda village in the Kairanaassembly constituency, Tiwari said that the district magistrate was asked to look into the matter.
