Mumbai registers lower voter turnout amid 5th phase polling

An average voter turnout of 54.33 per cent has been recorded in 13 Lok Sabha seats of Maharashtra during the fifth phase of polling, as per the latest data available with the office of the state’s Chief Electoral Officer.

The final figures will be declared later, an official from the CEO’s office said on Tuesday.

During the voting held in the 13 seats on Monday, six Lok Sabha constituencies in Mumbai recorded an average turnout of 52.27 per cent, compared to 55.38 per cent in the 2019 general elections.

The ST-reserved Dindori constituency (in Nashik district) recorded the highest turnout at 62.66 per cent while Kalyan saw the lowest polling at 47.08 per cent.

The BJP fielded Union minister Bharati Pawar in Dindori where she was pitted against Bhaskar Bhagare of the NCP (SP). Palghar, another tribal-dominated constituency, recorded the second highest turnout at 61.65 per cent. At many polling stations in various constituencies, people were standing in queues to cast vote even after the scheduled concluding time of 6 pm. ”As a standard procedure, every person standing in the queue is taken inside the premises and its gates are closed. Voting then goes on till the last person in the queue casts vote,” the official said.

During the polling on Monday, Nashik Lok Sabha seat reported 57.10 per cent polling, Dhule at 56.61 per cent, Bhiwandi 56.41 per cent, Mumbai North 55.21 per cent, Mumbai North East 53.75 per cent, Mumbai North West 53.67 per cent, Mumbai South Central 51.88 per cent, Mumbai North Central 51.42 per cent, Thane 49.81 per cent and Mumbai South 47.70 per cent, as per official data.