Lucknow: Chief Electoral Officer of Uttar Pradesh, Navdeep Rinwa, stated in a press conference held at the Chief Electoral Officer’s office that voting in 14 Lok Sabha constituencies, including 34-Mohanlalganj (SC), 35-Lucknow, 36-Rae Bareli, 37-Amethi, 45-Jalaun (SC), 46-Jhansi, 47-Hamirpur, 48-Banda, 49-Fatehpur, 50-Kaushambi (SC), 53-Barabanki (SC), 54-Faizabad, 57-Kaiserganj, 59-Gonda, and assembly constituency 173-Lucknow East by-election, concluded peacefully with no untoward incident being from anywhere. The voting commenced at 07:00 am and ended at 06:00 pm.
He informed that the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies that went to polls in the fifth phase are spread across 21 districts: Lucknow, Sitapur, Rae Bareli, Amethi, Sultanpur, Kanpur Dehat, Jalaun, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Banda, Chitrakoot, Fatehpur, Kaushambi, Pratapgarh, Barabanki, Ayodhya, Gonda, Bahraich, and Balrampur.
The Chief Electoral Officer reported that, based on information received from the districts until 6:00 pm, the total average 57.98 voting percentages in the 14 Lok Sabha constituencies of the state stood at constituency wise detail’s of voting percentage is as follow’s 34-Mohanlalganj (SC), 62.72 percent, 35-Lucknow 52.23 percent, 36-Rae Bareli 58.04 percent, 37-Amethi 54.40 percent, 45-Jalaun ( SC) 56.15 percent, 46-Jhansi 63.70 percent, 47-Hamirpur 60.56 percent, 48-Banda 59.64 percent, 49-Fatehpur 57.05 percent, 50-Kaushambi (SC) 52.79 percent, 53-Barabanki (SC) 67.10 percent, 54-Faizabad 59.10 percent, 57-Kaiserganj 55.68 percent, 59-Gonda 51.64 percent, in addition to 52.45 percent in 173-Lucknow East assembly seat by-election.
To ensure fairness and transparency in the voting process, webcasting was arranged at a total of 14,984 polling places for effective supervision. This webcasting was monitored at all three levels by the District Election Officer, Chief Electoral Officer, and the Election Commission of India. In addition to webcasting, videography was also arranged at 4,199 polling places.
The Chief Electoral Officer said that 21,907 no. of voters excercised their right to vote through postal ballots in different categories (such as voters above 85 years of age, disabled, essential services and polling personnel). For voters above 85 years of age and disabled voters who opted for postal ballots, the polling team conducted voting at their homes.
In order to ensure a transparent and fair process during home voting a micro observer and videographer accompanied the polling team, and the schedule of the polling team was shared with candidates to enable them or their representatives to observe the entire process. The list of eligible voters in these categories was also provided to the candidates. The entire voting process was extensively videographed.
Furthermore, postal ballot was also sent to the total 32,250 service voters by the returning officer through electronic mode (ETPBS). EDC has been issued to 29,005 personnel.
The Chief Electoral Officer apprised the media that the Election Commission deployed 14 general observers, 9 police observers, and 15 expenditure observers to oversee the voting process vigilantly. Additionally, 2,416 Sector Magistrates, 327 Zonal Magistrates, 549 Static Magistrates, and 3,619 Micro Observers were deployed.
At the state level, a Senior General Observer, 01 Senior Police Observer, and 01 Senior Expenditure Observer were also deployed by the Election Commission of India to oversee the entire election process. During the fifth phase of voting, some complaints were received, which were promptly resolved by district officials. Adequate paramilitary forces were deployed to ensure the peaceful conduct of the elections. The paramilitary forces are also responsible for the security of the EVM strong rooms.
EVMs and VVPATs required for voting were prepared for all 28688 polling stations (polling booths) in the elections. An adequate quantity of reserve EVMs and VVPATs was also prepared in various districts. Any complaints received during the voting process were promptly addressed, and effective action was taken to replace any faulty EVMs and VVPATs.
According to information received from the districts, total 167 ballot units, 268 control units, and 349 VVPATs were changed by 6:00 pm during the mock poll. After the voting started, a total of 67 BU, 67 CU and 238 VVPATs were also changed by 6:00 pm.
In the assembly by-election of Lucknow East, 06 BU, 02 CU, and total 11 VVPATs were changed by 6:00 pm during the mock poll. After the start of voting, zero BU, zero CU, and total zero VVPATs were changed by 6:00 pm. The elections were conducted peacefully, and no reports of any untoward incidents have been received.
