India General Elections 2024: Punjab records over 56 per cent turnout, Chandigarh nearly 68 per cent

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Punjab saw a voter turnout of 56.63 percent as all its 13 seats went to polls on Saturday in the seventh phase of Lok Sabha elections, while 68 percent electors exercised their franchise in the Chandigarh parliamentary constituency. In 2019, the voter turnout in the state was 65.96 per cent while it was 70.62 per cent in the Union Territory (UT) of Chandigarh. The polling came to a close at 6 pm. Poll officials said the turnout figure for the 2024 elections may rise as the data was still being compiled. Punjab Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C had set a target of achieving more than 70 percent turnout in these polls. Polling began at 7 am amid tight security arrangements, the officials said. Sibin C said the enthusiasm demonstrated by the voters despite intense heat was commendable. "By turning out in such significant numbers, voters have risen to the trust reposed in them by the founders of the Indian Constitution," he said.

Polling passed off peacefully in the state. Among the LS constituencies in Punjab, Bathinda witnessed the maximum turnout of 61.92 per cent while Amritsar recorded the lowest poll percentage of 50.33 percent, according to the Election Commission data. The polling percentage in Gurdaspur was 59.50, Ferozepur 59.44, Patiala 58.83, Faridkot 57.68, Sangrur 57.21, Khadoor Sahib 57.08, Anandpur Sahib 55.55, Hoshiarpur 55.04, Fatehgarh Sahib 54.94, Jalandhar 54.33 and Ludhiana 53.89, the data showed. espite searing heat, Voters continued to trickle in at polling stations. Drinking water, shades, 'chabeel' (sweetened water), medical kits and oral rehydration solution (ORS) were arranged at polling stations given the heatwave conditions, the officials said. Among those who cast their votes early were Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar, AAP leader Raghav Chadha, AAP candidates Malvinder Singh Kang, Karamjit Singh Anmol, BJP candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu, SAD candidate Anil Joshi and former cricketer Harbhajan Singh. Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, along with his wife, cast his vote in Muktsar. Congress candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla exercised his franchise in Amritsar, while the BJP's Chandigarh candidate Sanjay Tandon and his family voted in Chandigarh. SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, his wife and Bathinda candidate Harsimrat Kaur Badal, along with their son and two daughters, cast their votes in Muktsar.

BJP leader Tarun Chugh, former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa and BJP leader Manpreet Singh Badal cast their votes in Punjab while actor Ayushmann Khurrana and outgoing BJP MP from Chandigarh Kirron Kher exercised their franchise in the UT. BJP candidate Preneet Kaur cast her vote along with her family in Patiala. However, former chief minister Amarinder Singh did not cast his vote as he was indisposed. AAP MLA Neena Mittal was issued a notice for allegedly making a video of her casting vote at a polling booth in Rajpura. Six villages in Ludhiana boycotted the polls in protest against an upcoming biogas plant there, expressing fear it would contaminate underground water, air, and cause health problems. Among the prominent faces, BJP nominee and four-time MP Preneet Kaur is seeking re-election from the Patiala parliamentary constituency. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, a three-time MP; and the BJP's Parampal Kaur Sidhu, a former IAS officer, are trying their luck from Bathinda. Former CM and Congress candidate Charanjit Singh Channi and BJP nominee Sushil Rinku are in the fray from the Jalandhar reserved constituency.

Former deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa is contesting from Gurdaspur. Warring is contesting against the BJP's Ravneet Singh Bittu from Ludhiana. Radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, who is lodged in Assam's Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act (NSA), is fighting from Khadoor Sahib. Former diplomat and BJP nominee Taranjit Singh Sandhu is fighting from Amritsar against sitting MP and Congress candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla. Among its 13 candidates, the AAP has fielded five cabinet ministers -- Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal (Amritsar), Laljit Singh Bhullar (Khadoor Sahib), Gurmeet Singh Khuddian (Bathinda), Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer (Sangrur) and Balbir Singh (Patiala). Congress candidate Sukhpal Khaira is contesting from Sangrur while AAP's Karamjit Singh Anmol and the BJP's Hans Raj Hans are in the fray from the Faridkot seat.

SAD (Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann is contesting from Sangrur and Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, who is the son of Beant Singh, one of the two assassins of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, is contesting from the Faridkot reserved constituency. In Chandigarh, BJP candidate Sanjay Tandon is pitted against Congress nominee and former Union minister Manish Tewari. A total of 328 candidates, including 26 women, were in the fray in Punjab while 19 candidates including two women were contesting the elections in Chandigarh, the officials said. A total of 2,14,61,739 voters, including 1,01,74,240 women and 773 third-gender electors, were eligible to vote in Punjab. In Chandigarh, 6,59,805 voters were eligible to exercise their franchise. For the 13 Lok Sabha seats, a total of 24,451 polling stations were set up. Out of these, 5,694 polling stations were identified as critical. INDIA bloc allies Congress and AAP were contesting the polls separately while the BJP and the SAD were fighting the Lok Sabha polls on their own for the first time since 1996.

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