Voting picked up by Thursday afternoon in 95 seats across 11 States and Union Territory of Puducherry in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections which were marred by an IED blast by Naxals in Chhattisgarh, police firing in West Bengal on stone pelters and EVM glitches.
Voting was also under way in 35 Assembly constituencies in Odisha and in 18 Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu.
In the second phase of general elections, 95 constituencies are going to polls. Over 15 crore voters will decide the fate of 1,629 candidates on April 18.
Elections to Vellore constituency in Tamil Nadu and East Tripura seat were rescinded recently. A former Prime Minister and four Union Ministers are in the fray in this phase of Lok Sabha polls in which the BJP is looking to defend 27 seats.
Here are the live updates:
Phase 2 polling percentage across States, U.T. as of 5 p.m.
| Assam | 73.32% |
| Bihar | 58.14% |
| Chhattisgarh | 68.70% |
| Jammu and Kashmir | 43.37% |
| Karnataka | 61.80% |
| Maharashtra | 55.37% |
| Manipur | 74.69% |
| Odisha | 57.41% |
| Puducherry | 72.40% |
| Tamil Nadu | 61.52% |
| Uttar Pradesh | 58.12% |
| West Bengal | 75.27% |
Violence erupts at Manipur polling booth
Polling was disrupted at Manipur's 6/10 Kyamgei Muslim Makha Leikai polling booth after a mob stormed into it and disrupted voting.
Voting was disrupted at polling station 6/10 Kyamgei Muslim Makha Leikai in Manipur's Imphal East district.
People stormed the polling station and destroyed EVMs. Security personnel resorted to lathi charge and fired in the air to disperse the mob.
Further details are awaited. — Rahul Karmakar
Polling percentage as of 3 p.m. in Maharashtra
| Seat | Voting % |
| Buldhana | 45.94% |
| Akola | 45.39% |
| Amravati (SC) | 45.63% |
| Hingoli | 49.13% |
| Nanded | 50.04% |
| Parbhani | 48.45% |
| Beed | 46.29% |
| Osmanabad | 46.13% |
| Latur (SC) | 48.10% |
| Solapur (SC) | 41.47% |
Tamil Nadu: 3 elderly people die after casting votes
Three senior citizens collapsed and died after exercising their franchise for the Lok Sabha polls in three districts of Tamil Nadu Thursday, police said.
Balakrishnan of Coimbatore fainted and fell after coming out of the booth. He was being taken to a hospital when he died, the police said.
Similarly, Murugesan collapsed and he breathed his last at a booth in Erode, they said.
Likewise, Krishnan died after casting his vote in Salem, the police said.
All the three were in their mid-60s, they added. — PTI
Repolling ordred in four booths in Odisha
Around 53% poll turnout has been recorded in five Parliamentary constituencies of Odisha by 3 p.m.
Meanwhile, Odisha Chief Electoral Officer Surendra Kumar recommends re-poll in four booths following human error in fixing Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines in Sundargarh and Kandhamal parliamentary constituencies in Odisha. He rules out any error in the EVMs. — Satyasundar Barik
Stray incidents of violence in Raiganj and Darjeeling
Amidst reports of violence during polling at Chopra under Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat and Islampur and Gwaltore in Raiganj seat, special observers appointed by Election Commission of India to West Bengal said that the polling has "more or less been peaceful" in the State.
Ajai Naik, special general observer and Vivek Dube, the special police observer both told journalists that the polling has largely been peaceful. "Small incidents will always occur but voting has been peaceful," Mr Dube said. - Shiv Sahay Singh
Polling percentage in Assam at 3 p.m.
Tiwa tribal women in their traditional attire are on their way to cast vote for the second phase of general election in Karbi Angling district of Assam on April 18, 2019.
| Seat | Voting % |
| Karimganj | 63.66% |
| Silchar | 57.06% |
| Autonomous Districts | 62.70% |
| Mangaldoi | 62.73% |
| Nowgong | 56.78% |
An average of 60.38% of polling has been recorded until 3 p.m. in Assam.
Polling percentage as of 1 p.m. in Maharashtra
| Seat | Voting % |
| Buldhana | 34.43% |
| Akola | 34.46% |
| Amravati (SC) | 33.68% |
| Hingoli | 37.44% |
| Nanded | 38.19% |
| Parbhani | 37.95% |
| Beed | 34.65% |
| Osmanabad | 34.94% |
| Latur (SC) | 36.82% |
| Solapur (SC) | 31.56% |
Phase 2 polling percentage across States, U.T. as of 1 p.m.
| Assam | 46.42% |
| Bihar | 32.5% |
| Chhattisgarh | 47% |
| Jammu and Kashmir | 30% |
| Karnataka | 28.5% |
| Maharashtra | 35.4% |
| Odisha | 33% |
| Tamil Nadu | 39.49% |
| Uttar Pradesh | 39% |
| West Bengal | 51.6% @ 11 a.m. |
| Puducherry | 23% @ 12 p.m. |
| Manipur | 32% @ 11 a.m. |
Phase 2 voting picks up
Voting picked up by Thursday afternoon in 95 seats across 11 States and Union Territory of Puducherry.
Amidst tight security, polling was under way in Srinagar Parliamentary constituency of Jammu and Kashmir to decide the fate of 10 candidates, including NC president Farooq Abdullah who is seeking a re-election.
Security personnel have been deployed in strength in and around polling stations in all three districts -- Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal -- of the constituency, officials said.
Jammu and Kashmir recorded nearly 30% polling till 1 p.m. in Udhampur and Srinagar Lok Sabha constituencies, poll official said.
Polling in Chhattisgarh witnessed violence with an ITBP jawan suffering minor injuries after Naxals triggered an IED blast in Rajnandgaon district.
Long queues were seen at polling booths in Tamil Nadu where 30.62% voting was recorded till 11 a.m. in 38 Lok Sabha constituencies of the State, with Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and DMK chief M.K. Stalin among the early voters.
Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo said polling has been peaceful until now and issues like technical glitches in some locations are being addressed.
In Karnataka , an estimated 19.58% of voters exercised their franchise till 11 a.m. in 14 constituencies.
Puducherry recorded 23% voting till noon for the lone Lok Sabha, which is witnessing a battle between the ruling Congress and opposition AINRC.
Sporadic incidents of violence were reported in some areas of Bengal where around 51.6% voters exercised their franchise till 1 p.m. in three Lok Sabha constituencies, officials said.
A reporter and a camera person of a local news channel were allegedly manhandled when they went to cover polling at Kataphulbari in the Raiganj constituency, they said.
Voters in Uttar Dinajpur district's Chopra under the Raiganj constituency reportedly put up a road blockade, complaining about the absence of central forces at the polling stations, the sources said.
Police fired in the air and lobbed tear gas shells to control a mob, after stones were pelted at them and bombs were hurled by unknown persons in Chopra , a senior EC official in the district said.
At least three persons were detained by police in this connection, he said.
Meanwhile, CPI(M) candidate from Raiganj Md Salim claimed that his car was attacked by unknown persons when he went to a polling booth at Islampur in Uttar Dinajpur.
Bihar recorded 25.6% voting in five Lok Sabha seats till noon amidst reports of EVM malfunctioning and poll boycott delaying start of polling in some booths.
Voting was delayed due to EVM malfunctioning at a polling station at Masuria in Banka town, two polling booths under Kahalgaon assembly segment in Bhagalpur, and another two booths in Purnea.
Poll boycott was reported from a booth under Amarpur assembly segment in Banka, the official said.
People also did not cast vote in the initial hours at two polling stations under the same assembly segment as they were protesting killing of a farmer at Kaitha village. The process began only after 10.15 a.m.
In Odisha , around 18% voter turnout was recorded in the first four hours of polling in five Lok Sabha and 35 Assembly constituencies.
Maharashtra registered 21.47% voting till 11 a.m. in 10 constituencies where polling was under way.
In Nanded, there were complaints of malfunctioning of 78 electronic voting machines (EVMs).
In U.P., voting picked up with more than 38% of the electorate exercising their franchise till 1 p.m. in eight parliamentary constituencies.
SP president Akhilesh Yadav voiced concern over reports of EVM malfunctions in some parts of the Uttar Pradesh.
In Assam , an estimated 46.42% of over 69 lakh electorate exercised their franchise till 1 p.m. in five parliamentary constituencies.
According to the official, there were reports of EVM glitches in several booths, but the polling personnel have addressed the issues. — PTI
Polling percentage in Assam at 1 p.m.
| Seat | Voting % |
| Karimganj | 46.87% |
| Silchar | 44.13% |
| Autonomous Districts | 49.90% |
| Mangaldoi | 50.97% |
| Nowgong | 41.52% |
An average of 46.42% of polling has been recorded until 1 p.m. in Assam.
23% turnout till noon in Puducherry
Puducherry recorded 23% voting till noon in polling on Thursday for the lone Lok Sabha, which is witnessing a battle between the ruling Congress and opposition AINRC.
25% polling was registered till noon for the vacant Thattanchavady Assembly seat, election officials said.
The main battle for the Parliamentary seat from the Union Territory is between the ruling Congress’ candidate V. Vaithilingam, a former Assembly speaker and Opposition AINRC nominee K. Narayanasamy.
There are 18 contestants in the fray, including two women candidates. — PTI
Voting picks up in U.P., over 24% recorded by 11 a.m.
Voting picked up with an overall polling percentage of 24.31 being reported from eight parliamentary constituencies in Uttar Pradesh in the first four hours.
Polling is under way in Nagina (SC), Amroha, Bulandshahr (SC), Aligarh, Hathras (SC), Fatehpur Sikri, Mathura and Agra (SC) constituencies in the second phase of polls.
According to the Election Commission, polling percentage till 11.00 a.m. was — 23.78 in Nagina, 24.64 in Amroha, 24.94 in Bulandshahr, 23 in Aligarh, 25.93 in Hathras, 23.71 in Mathura, 25 in Agra and 23.47 in Fatehpur Sikri.
Polling gathered the maximum pace in Aligarh and Mathura after a slow start.
In Aligarh, the polling percentage touched 23% by 11.00 a.m., from 7.6% at 9.00 a.m. — PTI
Bhainsapalli residents boycott polls in Odisha
Residents of Bhainsapalli village, which comes under Odisha’s Balangir Lok Sabha constituency, boycott polls on April 18, 2019.
Lack of basic amenities are often cited as reasons by people to boycott polls, but residents of Bhainsapalli village under Odisha’s Balangir Lok Sabha constituency did not turn up for voting on Thursday morning for a strange reason.
The locals are unhappy that a new railway station has not been named after their village although a part of its built-up area lies in its jurisdiction.
33% polling in Odisha by 1 p.m.
The estimated voters' turnout by 1 p.m. in Odisha is 33%.
Meanwhile, static surveillance squad on Thursday found cash worth ₹4 lakh from BJP candidate Ashok Nayak's car who is contesting from Hindol Assembly constituency in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district. — Satyasundar Barik
Polling percentage as of 11 a.m. in Maharashtra
| Seat | Voting % |
| Buldhana | 20.49% |
| Akola | 21.03% |
| Amravati (SC) | 20.06% |
| Hingoli | 24.08% |
| Nanded | 24.40% |
| Parbhani | 26.7% |
| Beed | 18.94% |
| Osmanabad | 20.09% |
| Latur (SC) | 23.14% |
| Solapur (SC) | 16.50% |
Around 32% polling recorded in Manipur till 11 a.m.
Around 32% of the 9,28,626 voters exercised their franchise till 11 a.m. for the Inner Manipur parliamentary constituency on Thursday.
Chief Electoral Officer P.K. Singh said 32.18% voting was recorded till the first four hours.
The electorate comprising 4,80,751 women voters are eligible to cast their votes at 1,300 polling stations in the second phase of polling.
Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla, after casting vote at TG Higher Secondary School, urged voters not to waste their democratic right.
The Governor who has moved her voting constituency to Imphal from her constituency in New Delhi, said, “We should cast our vote in the place where we live”.
Ms. Heptulla is now enrolled in the Sagolband Assembly constituency in Manipurs Imphal West district.
She reminded the people that unlike in some other countries where women had to fight for their right to vote.
“The Indian Constitution provides adult franchise to both men and women.”
A total of 12 candidates, including five independents are in the fray from the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha seat.
Outer Manipur constituency, the only other parliamentary seat in the State, went to the polls in the first phase on April 11. — PTI
16.8% polling in West Bengal till 9 a.m.
Around 16.78% of voters cast their ballots in the first two hours of polling in three Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal, amid reports of sporadic incidents of violence from some areas, officials said.
An Election Commission (EC) official said around 16.14% polling was recorded in Darjeeling, while the percentage in Jalpaiguri (SC) and Raiganj seats was 16.84 and 17.45, respectively.
Reports of violence and protests came in from some places in the Raiganj constituency, EC sources said.
A reporter and a camera person of a local news channel were allegedly manhandled when they went to cover polling at Kataphulbari in the Raiganj constituency, they said.
Voters in Uttar Dinajpur district’s Chopra under the Raiganj constituency reportedly put up a road blockade, complaining about the absence of Central forces at the polling stations, the sources said.
“We are scared for our lives... We have no confidence in the state police, and want immediate deployment of central forces here,” a voter in Hemtabad (SC) Assembly segment under the Raiganj Lok Sabha constituency, said.
Police fired in the air and lobbed tear gas shells to control a mob, after stones were pelted at them and bombs were hurled by unknown miscreants in Chopra, a senior EC official in the district said.
At least three persons were detained by police in this connection, he said.
“Our officials are there with state police officers to control the situation. We are talking to the voters to urge them to cast their ballots without any fear. We have assured them of total protection,” the official said.
Meanwhile, CPI(M) candidate from Raiganj Md. Salim claimed that his car was attacked by unknown persons when he went to a polling booth at Islampur in Uttar Dinajpur.
“I got to know of rigging inside this booth. After I reached the polling station, some people attacked my car. Though I am unhurt, the vehicle has been damaged. I believe the ruling TMC is behind the incident,” Mr. Salim alleged.
The EC has deployed 194 companies of central forces to cover 80% of the over 5,000 booths in the three Lok Sabha seats.
The Commission has also appointed former Bihar Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Ajay V. Nayak as special observer for West Bengal, while retired IPS officer Vivek Dubey has been sent to the State as special police observer. — PTI
Amid polling, Naxals trigger IED blast in Chhattisgarh, none hurt
Naxals triggered an IED blast on Thursday in Chhattisgarh’s Rajnandgaon district where polling for Lok Sabha elections is under way, a senior police official said.
No casualty was reported in the incident, he said.
“The rebels detonated the Improvised Explosive Device [IED] around 10.30 a.m. between Medha and Dabba villages, falling under Manpur-Mohla Assembly segment, when a team of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police team was out on area domination operation in view of polling in the area,” he said.
No harm was caused to the security personnel as the explosion took place a few metres away from them, he said, adding that a combing operation was under way in the area.
Polling in the Manpur-Mohla Assembly segment of Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha constituency is being held from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. In the remaining seven Assembly segments of Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha seat, the polling time is from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A thick security blanket of around 60,000 personnel, and drones, has been thrown around the three constituencies-Rajnandgaon, Kanker and Mahasamund — of the State where polling is being held in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections. — PTI
The BJP leaders will be meeting the Election Commission at 4 pm to raise the issue of violence in North Bengal.
"Situation is quite unstable on ground. In Darjeeling - in many places - our agents were not allowed to enter the booth. Many including women are threatened and asked to stay off the booths. In Chopra area, in Raiganj, there were attacks on us," BJP Darjeeling coordinator Manabendra Chakraborty told The Hindu on phone.
"Booths 144-151 & 159 & 189 captured by Trinamool Congress in Chopra," BJP's Darjeeling district convenor Prasenjit Pal told The Hindu .
Violence breaks out at West Bengal's Chopra
Violence broke out at Chopra area in Raiganj parliamentary constituency.
Trouble began brewing in the morning, with locals seeking central forces to bring the situation under control.
CPI(M) leader Mohd Salim's car was reportedly attacked. He also alleged booth capturing attempts by miscreants in Chopra.
"Police was not there. Booth was captured. They systematically attacked ... and threatened voters. My vehicle was attacked. Glasses were broken. One person was injured.... Police was absent." said Mr. Salim, the CPI(M) candidate.
An EVM machine was reportedly broken in booth number 112 in Raiganj.
Television channels reported violent clashes between Trinamool Congress and BJP workers.
Polling peaceful in Puducherry
Polling has been without untoward incidents in Puducherry so far, barring minor delays at some booths due to technical glitches in EVMs.
As of about 10 a.m., Puducherry had recorded 7.5 per cent polling.
Lt. Governor Kiran Bedi cast her vote at a polling booth at the Directorate of Health and Family Welfare.
After casting her vote, Ms. Bedi said, “Eternal vigil is the price of liberty. Right to vote comes with a duty for alert citizenship”.
Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy was among the early voters to exercise his franchise at the booth in the PWD premises.
The Congress candidate V. Vaithilingam and principal opponent K. Narayanasamy of the AINRC are expected to cast votes by noon.
Control units, ballot units and VVPATs were replaced at around 20 polling stations in the UT.
Assam sees average polling of 11.61% till 9 a.m.
Karimganj, in Assam, recorded 11.82% polling, while Silchar saw 13.29%. The Autonomous Districts had 12% polling, while Mangaldoi, Nowgong saw 11.32% and 9.62% respectively.
9.2% voter turnout recorded till 9 a.m. in Bihar
About 9.2 per cent of the over 86 lakh electorate in Odisha exercised their franchise in the first two hours of polling in Bihar on Thursday, with reports of EVM malfunctioning and poll boycott in some booths.
Kishanganj and Banka recorded the highest turnout at 10.5 per cent each in the first two hours, followed by Bhagalpur at 10 per cent, Katihar at 8 per cent and Purnea at 7 per cent, the CEO office said.
Voting was hampered for a brief period at several polling stations at Masuria in Banka town, Kahalgaon assembly segment in Bhagalpur and Purnea, the official said.
Poll boycott was reported from a polling station in Amarpur assembly segment in Banka, he said.
In Odisha, a nonagenarian dies while waiting to cast his vote
Ninety-six year old Natabar Behera took his last breath on Thursday morning while waiting in queue to vote at Odisha’s Kansamari village under Sanakhemundi assembly segment of Aska Lok Sabha seat.
The deceased was a resident of Kansamari. He had reached polling booth number 184 at the village at around 7AM. While he was waiting fro his turn to vote, he fell unconscious. He was immediately transported to Digapahandi Community Health Center (CHC), where he was declared dead.
Rahul, Modi urge people to vote
11% voter turnout in Chhattisgarh till 9 a.m.
Around 11 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the first two hours of polling in three Lok Sabha constituencies of Chhattisgarh on Thursday.
A large part of the Kanker Lok Sabha constituency is Naxal-affected where security forces are maintaining extra vigil to ensure peaceful polling, the official said.
Some pockets of Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund are also struggling with the Maoist menace.
Polling will end by 3 pm in Naxal-hit areas.
Amidst tight security, polling was underway Thursday in Srinagar Parliamentary constituency of Jammu and Kashmir to decide the fate of 10 candidates, including National Conference president Farooq Abdullah who is seeking a re-election from Srinagar.
Police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed in strength in and around polling stations in all three districts -- Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal -- of the constituency, polling officials said.
However, they said most of the polling booths in the capital city wore a deserted look.
Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde cast his vote at a polling station in Maharashtra’s Solapur along with his wife. “Voters will correct their mistake this time”, Mr. Shinde, who is the Congress candidate from Solapur, told the voters.
A journalist of a television channel was attacked at Gwaltore in Raiganj. He suffers injuries.
Mathura is one of the constituencies where voting is underway.
Congress candidate from Raiganj, Deepa Dasmunshi, says she couldn't cast her vote due to EVM malfunction.
Voters waiting outside a polling booth in Raiganj.
50 candidates in the fray in 5 seats in Assam
Tribal women with their children waiting in queue to cast their votes in Karbi Anglong district of Assam on Thursday.
The second phase of voting for five parliamentary seats in Assam and one in Manipur began on Thursday. Both states are ruled by the BJP in coalition with regional parties. There are altogether 50 candidates in the Assam seats, the highest number of candidates being 14 in Karimganj and lowest in Autonomous District with five. The others are Mangaldoi, Nowgong and Silchar. A total 6,910,592 voters, 3,355,592 of them women and 180 of the third gender, are expected to exercise their franchise across 8,992 polling stations in the five Assam seats.
In Inner Manipur, a total of 928,626 voters, including 480,751 females and 32 third gender will cast their votes across 1,300 polling stations to decide the fate of 11 candidates Simultaneously, by-polls are being held in 19 booths of the Outer Manipur seat where election was conducted in the first phase on April 11. The BJP had won three of these six seats in 2014. The party did not give a ticket to the representatives of these seats – Guwahati, Mangaldoi, and Nowgong – in Assam and fielded relatively younger candidates. Queen Ojah, Dilip Saikia, and Rupak Sharma have come in for veterans Bijoya Chakraborty, Ramen Deka and junior Railway Minister Rajen Gohain respectively. Their prime rivals in that order are Congress candidates Bobbeeta Sharma, Rajya Sabha member Bhubaneswar Kalita, and former State minister Pradyut Bordoloi.
Voting has begun in three constituencies of West Bengal — Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Raiganj.
As many as 77 companies of central forces are eployed in Darjeeling, 64 in Raiganj and 44 in Jalpaiguri.
Elections are being held in seven phases in West Bengal.
Prominent faces in the fray in the Lok Sabha contest are Union ministers Jitendra Singh, Jual Oram, Sadananda Gowda and Pon Radhakrishnan; former prime minister H D Deve Gowda; DMK’s Dayanidhi Maran, A Raja and Kanimozhi; Congress leaders Verappa Moily and Raj Babbar; National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and BJP’s Hema Malini.
Over 15.80 crore voters will decide the fate of the 1,600-odd contestants.
Polling began Thursday morning for 95 Lok Sabha seats spread across 11 states and the union territory of Puducherry with Tamil Nadu witnessing contest in 38 constituencies.
Voting was also underway in 35 assembly constituencies in Odisha and in 18 assembly seats in Tamil Nadu.
Published - April 18, 2019 07:04 am IST
