On Monday, May 13th, the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 is set to take place. People will vote in 96 different areas across nine states and one Union Territory.
At the same time, there will be elections for 175 assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh and 28 assembly seats in Odisha during this phase.
On Monday morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi voiced his optimism, hoping for a strong voter turnout to uphold democracy. Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah encouraged voters, including those in Jammu and Kashmir, to show up in large numbers at the polling stations as the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections commenced.
Speaking on X platform (formerly known as twitter), PM Modi shared that in today’s fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 96 seats across 10 States and Union Territories are up for voting. He expressed confidence that voters in these areas, especially the youth and women, will turn out in significant numbers, urging everyone to fulfill their duty and contribute to strengthening democracy.
According to the Election Commission of India, voting is scheduled to commence at 7 am and conclude at 6 pm.
Today, nine states and one Union Territory are participating in the voting process. These include Andhra Pradesh (25 seats), Bihar (5 seats), Jharkhand (4 seats), Madhya Pradesh (8 seats), Maharashtra (11 seats), Odisha (4 seats), Telangana (17 seats), Uttar Pradesh (13 seats), West Bengal (8 seats), and Jammu and Kashmir (1 seat).
Some notable candidates contesting in today’s elections include Akhilesh Yadav from the Kannauj constituency in Uttar Pradesh, Mahua Moitra from Krishnanagar in West Bengal, Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary from Baharampur, also in West Bengal, Giriraj Singh from Begusarai in Bihar, YS Sharmila from Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh, Arjun Munda from Khunti constituency in Jharkhand, Shatrughan Sinha from Asansol, also in West Bengal, and Asaduddin Owaisi from Hyderabad in Telangana. These candidates represent various parties and constituencies, each competing for a position in the Lok Sabha,
It is noteworthy that this is the first significant election in Kashmir following the removal of Article 370 in August 2019.
In the initial two hours of polling on Monday, approximately 10.35% of voters cast their ballots in 96 constituencies across 10 states and Union Territories during the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections. However, there were reports of EVM malfunctions in West Bengal.
According to the Election Commission, Jammu and Kashmir had the lowest voter turnout by 9 a.m., with only 5.07% of voters participating, while West Bengal saw the highest turnout at 15.24%.
The Election Commission announced on Saturday that the voter turnout for the third phase of polling in the Lok Sabha elections was recorded at 65.68 percent.
The Election Commission released a statement on Saturday, revealing that 66.89 percent of male voters, 64.4 percent of female voters, and 25.2 percent of registered transgender voters exercised their right to vote during the third phase. This phase saw a total of 17.24 crore citizens eligible to vote, comprising 8.85 crore males and 8.39 crore females.
The upcoming stage of the election is scheduled for May 20. Following the conclusion of the final phase of voting on June 1, the counting of votes is set to take place on June 4.
