More than 10 days after Phase 1 and four days after Phase 2 of polling for the ongoing general elections, the Election Commission of India (EC) released the final voter turnout figures for the two rounds on April 30. While Phase 1 saw a turnout of 66.14%, for Phase 2, it was 66.7%.
However, the poll body did not release the total number of voters in each constituency. The Opposition parties, which had earlier in the day raised this issue majorly on social media platforms, pointed this out after the EC released the data.
Polling was held in 102 constituencies on April 19 under Phase 1, while 88 seats went to the polls on April 26 in Phase 2.
In Phase 1, the turnout of male voters was 66.22% while that of female electors was 66.07%. The corresponding figures for Phase 2 were 66.99% and 66.42%, according to a statement from the EC on Tuesday.
During the last general elections in 2019, the first phase final aggregate turnout was shared two days after the voting. The voter turnout for the first phase in 2019 was 69.43% and for the second phase was 69.44%.
Both phases have shown a dip in voting percentages.
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‘EC should be transparent’
As the EC released the figures late on Tuesday, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury posted on X: “Finally ECI has put out the final voter turnout figures for the first 2 phases which are substantially, not marginally as is normal, higher than the initial figures. But why are the absolute numbers of voters in each parliamentary constituency not put out? Percentages are meaningless unless this figure is known.”
“Apprehensions of manipulation of results continue as total voter numbers can be altered at the time of counting. Total number of voters in each constituency was always available on ECI website till 2014! ECI must be transparent and put out this data”.
He clarified in a post on X: “I’m talking of absolute number of registered voters in each constituency not the number of polled votes which will be known only after postal ballots are counted. Why is the total number of voters in each constituency not being put out? ECI must answer”.
Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien said: “Four days after Phase 2 ends, Election Commission releases final voting figures. A bump up (jump in turnout) of 5.75% from what EC released 4 days ago! Is this normal? What am I missing here?”
Earlier in the day, Opposition leaders questioned the delay in sharing of data by the EC.
In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said: “For the first time, even 11 days after the first phase of the polls and four days after the second phase, the final voter turnout has not been published by the ECI. In the past, ECI used to publish the final voter turnout immediately after voting or within 24 hours. Only approximate polling figures are available on ECI’s website. What accounts for this delay?”
“Additionally, the number of registered voters in each Lok Sabha constituency and the Assembly constituencies included in that Lok Sabha constituency is also not available on the Commission’s website. It only shows the total number of voters in a State and the number of voters in each booth,” he posted on X.
Mr. Yechury also posted on X that the delay in release of data was “very disturbing”. “This raises serious apprehensions on manipulation of results,” he said.
