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A higher voter turnout compared with the 2009 Lok Sabha polls and largely incident-free voting marked the sixth phase of polling which ended here on Thursday for 117 Parliamentary constituencies in 12 States and Union Territories.
In Uttar Pradesh, the 12 Parliamentary constituencies which went to polls had a turnout of 60.12 per cent, which is an almost 12 per cent increase over the 46.63 per cent turnout reported in 2009.
There were reports of poll boycotts in some polling booths with voters refusing to cast their ballot to show displeasure over development works not being done.
Tamil Nadu reported a voter turnout of 73 per cent, which Election Commission officials said is likely to go up further in all the 39 Parliamentary constituencies which went to the polls. During the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the average voter turnout in the State was 73.03 per cent.
On Thursday, Chennai North recorded a voter turnout of 64.17 per cent (64.91 per cent in 2009) while Chennai Central recorded a turnout of 60.91 per cent (61.04 per cent). In Chennai South, the voter turnout was 58.17 per cent compared with 62.66 per cent in 2009.
Puducherry had a voter turnout of 82 per cent compared with 79.85 per cent in 2009, while Maharashtra recorded a turnout of 55.33 per cent compared with 44.86 per cent in 2009.
The five Parliamentary constituencies in Rajasthan that went to the polls on Thursday had a turnout of 59.2 per cent, compared with 49.8 per cent in the last Lok Sabha polls. Briefing newspersons, a senior Election Commission Officer said the completion of polls on Thursday meant that the election process had been completed in 349 Parliamentary constituencies in 24 States and Union Territories. “The national voting average for these 349 Parliamentary constituencies is 66 per cent as compared to 57.33 per cent in 2009,” the spokesman said.
Among the candidates in fray on Thursday were Salman Khurshid (Farrukhabad, UP), A. Raja (Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu), Dayanidhi Maran (Chennai Central, Tamil Nadu), A. Ramadoss (Dharmapuri, Tamil Nadu), Sushma Swaraj (Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh) and Mulayam SinghYadav (Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh).
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