Panchayat polls: 14 districts cast vote for 216 ZPs, 94 APs & 1139 GPs in Phase 1
An overall voter turnout percentage of 56.41% at 3.30 pm was recorded at the timing of filing this report
Guwahati, May 2: The first phase of Panchayat polls in Assam took place on Friday, with 14 districts going to the polling booths to cast their votes. The overall voter turnout stood at 56.41% as of 3:30 PM.
Polling in the first phase was held in Sonitpur, Biswanath, Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sivasagar, Charaideo, Jorhat, Majuli, Golaghat, Cachar, Hailakandi, and Sribhumi districts.
The polling process began at 7:30 AM and ended at 4:30 PM for 216 zilla parishads, 94 anchalik panchayats, and 1,139 gaon panchayats in the first phase.
Till 9:30 AM, 10.24% votes were cast across the state. Lakhimpur registered the highest turnout at 14%, followed by Majuli at 12.77%, and Jorhat at 12%. The lowest turnout was recorded in Dibrugarh (7%), followed by Tinsukia (8.40%) and Cachar (8.5%).
The overall voter turnout in the state till 11:30 AM was 24.10%. Majuli recorded 28.69%, followed by Hailakandi (27.61%) and Lakhimpur (27.6%). The lowest turnout was in Dibrugarh (18%), followed by Tinsukia (18.25%) and Charaideo (21.54%).
By 1:30 PM, the overall voter turnout rose to 41.87%. Dhemaji recorded a turnout of 48.4%, followed by Cachar at 48.1% and Lakhimpur at 47.75%. The lowest turnout was in Tinsukia (34.37%), Dibrugarh (35%), and Charaideo (37.09%).
Numbers saw an uptick by 3:30 PM, with the overall turnout reaching 56.41%. Lakhimpur recorded 66.5%, followed by Dhemaji (62.1%) and Majuli (61.67%). The lowest turnout was in Dibrugarh (45%), Tinsukia (48.14%), and Charaideo (50.94%).
At the time of filing this report, the final voter turnout was yet to be updated.
In total, more than 1.80 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes in the two-phase elections. This includes 90.71 lakh male voters, 89.65 lakh female voters, and 408 voters from the third gender, across 25,007 polling stations.
The second phase of the panchayat elections will be held on May 7 in the districts of Dhubri, South Salmara, Mankachar, Goalpara, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Bajali, Nalbari, Kamrup, Kamrup (Metro), Hojai, Nagaon, Morigaon, and Darrang.
Repoll, if any, for the first phase will be held on May 4, and for the second phase on May 9.
The counting of votes for both phases will take place on May 11.
The Assam State Election Commission has made elaborate arrangements to ensure free and fair elections. Security personnel have been deployed at all polling stations, and over 1.20 lakh polling officials are on duty to facilitate the process.
There were, however, incidents of violence reported in various parts of the state, such as Cachar, Sribhumi, and Sonitpur.
A total of 348 zilla parishad and anchalik parishad candidates have already been elected uncontested, as the ruling NDA established a lead with 325 seats, according to the Assam State Election Commission.
The NDA has secured 37 zilla parishad seats (35 BJP and 2 AGP) and 288 anchalik panchayat seats (259 BJP and 29 AGP) unopposed, it said.
Independents have won 15 anchalik parishad seats, the Congress nine, and the AIUDF one seat uncontested.
Panchayat polls are being held for the first time after the delimitation of constituencies in Assam.
Seven districts of the state are under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, where autonomous council polls are held.