New Delhi: Voting for the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha elections has begun on 57 seats across seven states and one Union Territory (UT). Among the notable candidates is Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is seeking a third consecutive term from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.
Voters will determine the fate of 904 candidates contesting on 57 seats in the final phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
Vote counting for Lok Sabha polls will happen on June 4. Results for Assembly elections in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim will be declared on June 2.
Polling will happen in all 13 seats of Punjab and four of Himachal Pradesh, 13 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, nine in West Bengal, eight in Bihar, six in Odisha, and three seats in Jharkhand, alongside Chandigarh. This phase will also see voting for the remaining 42 assembly constituencies of Odisha and bypolls to six Assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh.
In Uttar Pradesh, polling will cover 13 seats, including Varanasi, where PM Modi faces challengers like Ajay Rai (Congress), Ather Jamal Lari (BSP), and several independents. Uttar Pradesh sees a direct contest between the BJP-led NDA and the coalition of Samajwadi Party and Congress.
Meanwhile, Polling is underway for the nine Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal in the seventh phase on Saturday, marked by reports of violence and tension across various areas. Clashes were reported in the Satuliya area in Bhangar, within the Jadavpur constituency near Kolkata, between the Indian Secular Front (ISF) and CPI(M) supporters. The confrontation led to several injuries among ISF members, exacerbated by the presence of country-made bombs.
In Kultali, South 24 Parganas district, an angry mob forced its way into polling stations, seizing an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) and throwing it into a nearby pond. This incident occurred after some polling agents were allegedly barred from entering the booths, prompting local residents to retaliate by seizing the EVM equipped with Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) and discarding it.