The 57 seats voting in the last and 7th phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024 saw about 58.34 % voter turnout till 5 pm, the Election Commission of India said on Saturday. Voting is taking place since 7 am to decide the fate of 904 candidates, including PM Modi, across 57 seats in 7 states and 1 Union Territory in the last and final phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2024.

Himachal Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of about 48.6% followed by Jharkhand with 66.56% turnout till 5 pm. West Bengal saw about 69.89 %, Uttar Pradesh about 54% and Bihar recorded a turnout of about 48.86% till 5 pm. Chandigarh UT saw a turnout of about 62.8% till 5 pm, according to Election Commission of India.

Multiple incidents of violence marred the 7th and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal, as TMC and BJP workers clashed in various parts of violence-prone Jadavpur, Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha seats. Earlier during the day, the prime minister called upon the voters to turnout in large numbers and vote. He said he hoped young and women voters exercise their franchise in record numbers and together they should work towards making India’s democracy more vibrant and participative.

The states where voting is taking place in the 7th phase today are Punjab (all 13 seats), Uttar Pradesh (13 seats), West Bengal (9 seats), Bihar (8 seats), Himachal Pradesh (all 4 seats), Jharkhand (3 seats), Odisha (6 seats) and 1 seat of Chandigarh Union Territory.

The voting started at 7 am. Apart from PM Modi, the other candidates contesting today include BJP leaders Kangana Ranaut, Ravi Kishan and Anurag Thakur, Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh, RJD leader Misa Bharti, and Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee. Elections are also being held for 42 assembly constituencies in Odisha along with Lok Sabha elections. The counting of votes is going to take place on June 4.

Voting for the 7th and final phase of the Lok Sabha elections started on Saturday. PM Modi is among the prominent leaders contesting in this phase of elections. At 1pm, 40% voter turnout was recorded across 7 states and Chandigarh. Bihar recorded the lowest voter turnout of over 35% while Himachal Pradesh recorded the highest voter turnout at 48.6%.

Voting started across 57 constituencies which spanned across 7 states and the Union Territory of Chandigarh to decide the fate of 904 candidates who are contesting in the election. The campaigning for the elections ended on Thursday as top leaders held massive rallies across India.

13 seats in both Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, 9 in West Bengal, 8 in Bihar, 6 in Odisha, 4 in Himachal Pradesh, 3 in Jharkhand and 1 Lok Sabha seat in Chandigarh is  going for polls today. Other top BJP candidates including Union Minister Anurag Thakur from Himachal Pradesh’s Hamirpur, Ravi Shankar Prasad from Bihar’s Patna Sahib and actor Kangana Ranaut from Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi.

Congress’s Manish Tewari is contesting from Chandigarh while Vikramaditya Singh is contesting from Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi and Ajay Rai is contesting from Varanasi opposite Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee is contesting from Diamond Harbour.

In Himachal’s Mandi, BJP’s Kangana Ranaut is making her electoral debut, as she is contesting opposite Vikramaditya Singh of Congress. In Bihar’s Pataliputra, RJD has fielded Lalu Prasad Yadav’s eldest daughter Misa Bharti opposite BJP candidate Ram Kripal Yadav, who joined the party ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, and has been victorious 2 times.

Voting for the remaining 42 assembly constituencies of Odisha is also going to be held today. A total of 904 candidates are contesting in these 57 Lok Sabha seats. Many key seats including Varanasi, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking his third re-election, will go for elections in this phase.

BJP President JP Nadda said today that he voted to make India even stronger and self-reliant. Nadda stated in an interview that Indians are optimistic about the future of their nation under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Nadda said, he voted to make the country stronger, and self-reliant. How far India has come under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s direction. Thus, not just us but also countless numbers of people perceive a transformed India compared to a decade ago and harbor optimism for the times ahead, he added.

People had lost faith in politics and politicians ten years ago. These people are now moving forward and putting their hopes in the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he continued.

The 63-year-old also rejected accusations from the Opposition that, should it win power, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would change the Constitution. He claimed that the Congress, under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, had altered the Constitution’s Preamble in 1976 and was currently attempting to bring up the matter in order to divide voters.

Congress never operates in a constructive manner. They never sent a good message to the nation. They constantly look for problems to cause division in society and operate with the ability to create obstacles, Nadda said.

When Congress sees anything that can move the nation forward and bring people together, they do not like it. The BJP chief continued,Congress only wants to play vote bank politics and divide society.

The united opposition, running under the INDIA bloc’s banner, will face the BJP in its quest for a third term in a row.

In the recent election of 2019, the BJP and its allies secured 352 out of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament in India, with the BJP securing 303 seats on its own. With a goal of securing a third term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP anticipates winning this election handily. He is the contest’s front-runner, followed by Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress and generally seen as the opposition’s face.