At 64.4%, Bihar sees highest-ever voter turnout in phase 1 of Assembly Election | Top points

Voting for the first phase of the Bihar Assembly election was held on Thursday across 18 districts of the state. A total of 121 Assembly Constituencies (ACs) in the state went to polls, with a total electorate of over 3.75 crore.

Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Vinod Singh Gunjiyal said that a provisional voter turnout of 64.46% was recorded at 6pm, when polls closed.

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“Voting began at 7 am and concluded at 6 pm amid tight security. Around 64.46 per cent voter turnout was recorded,” he said.

The remaining 122 seats of the 243-member assembly will vote on November 11. The counting of results will take place on November 14.

Here’s a look at phase 1 of Bihar election:

• The first phase of the Bihar Assembly election witnessed a record provisional voter turnout of 64.66%, the highest in the state’s history, according to the Election Commission.
• The last recorded voter turnout was 62.57% in the 2000 Bihar Assembly elections, and a turnout of 64.6% was recorded in the 1998 Lok Sabha election, according to data from the poll body.

• According to Bihar CEO Gunjiyal, a total of 3.75 crore voters were eligible to exercise their franchise in Thursday’s polling. The electoral fate of 1,314 candidates was at stake.
• Voting took place across 45,341 polling stations, of which 36,733 were in rural areas, he added. The highest voter turnout was recorded in Begusarai, while the lowest polling took place in Sheikhpura.
• According to the Bihar CEO, 143 complaints were received during the day and were immediately resolved.
• According to the poll body, CEC Gyanesh Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, kept a close watch on the polling through live-webcasting, which was ensured in 100% of the polling stations for the first time in Bihar.
• Polling was boycotted in certain booths in Buxar, Fatuha and Suryagarha, according to the Bihar CEO.
• In Lakhisarai, Bihar deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha alleged that his convoy was attacked by “goons” of the RJD, the main opposition party. He said that he was in the area after receiving complaints of voters being “terrorised”.
• Additional Chief Electoral Officer Amit Kumar Pandey said that the poll body has sought a detailed report on the incident in Lakhisarai. “Action will be taken based on it,” he said.
• Another incident was reported from Manjhi assembly constituency of Saran district, where the convoy of Satyendra Yadav, the sitting CPI(ML) Liberation MLA, was attacked by unidentified persons, according to PTI. According to the police, the occupants of the car, including the MLA, escaped unhurt in the attack.