Bihar polls: 26.94% voting recorded till noon

October 28, 2015

Patna, Oct 28: About 27 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 12 noon in 50 Assembly constituencies spread over six districts of Bihar in the third phase of polling today.

bihar

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who cast his vote at polling booth number 204 at Bakhtiyarpur, faced protest from a section of people agitating over death of a girl allegdly due to lack of proper medical facility at Bakhtiyarpur bazar.

Other prominent personalities who voted today include Governor Ram Nath Kovind and his wife Savita Kovind, RJD chief Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and son Tejaswi Yadav and former Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

Prasad and Rabri Devi cast their vote at polling station number 150 of Digha assembly constituency of Patna.

Union minister Ravishankar Prasad arrived at the polling booth riding an e-rickshaw with his mother. Minister of State Ramkripal Yadav rode a motorcycle to a booth at Jamal road in Patna to cast his vote.

Additional Chief Electoral Officer R Lakshamanan said around 26.94 per cent turnout has been reported from 50 Assembly constituencies in the third phase till 12 noon.

Polling is underway in six districts of Saran, Vaishali, Nalanda, Patna, Bhojpur and Buxar in this phase.

Meanwhile, in a freak incident a monkey injured four voters, including two women who were standing in a queue in front of the polling where Nitish Kumar had earlier cast his vote.

The incident took place at Project Girls School, Station House Officer of Bhakhtiyarpur police station Vinay Krishna said.

The booth falls under Bakhtiyarpur Assembly constituency.

A team of forest department arrived from Patna and were trying to catch the monkey.

As per hourly EC bulletin till 12 noon, Saran recorded 28.45 per cent turnout, Vaishali 30.53 per cent, Nalanda 27.39 per cent, Patna 23.03 per cent, Bhojpur 27.06 per cent and Buxar 30.05 per cent.

While Vaishali district recorded a maximum turnout of 30.53 per cent, Bhojpur recorded the lowest turnout of 27.06 per cent till 12 noon.

There were reports of EVM malfunctioning at a few places in the Assembly constituencies of Digha, Masaurhi, Mahnar, Buxar where polling began nearly an hour later.

Polling will end at 4 pm in 10 constituencies due to security reasons and at 5 pm in the rest 40 constituencies.

Voting on 81 seats has already completed in the first two phases on October 12 and October 16.

Two more rounds of polling would be held on November 1 and November 5 for the rest of the 112 seats in the 243-member Bihar Assembly. Results would be declared on November 8.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 16,2025

bengal.jpg

The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 16,2025

jordan.jpg

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman, during which the two leaders discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral relations, with the Prime Minister outlining an eight-point vision covering key areas of cooperation.

Describing the meeting as “productive”, PM Modi said he shared a roadmap focused on trade and economy, fertilisers and agriculture, information technology, healthcare, infrastructure, critical and strategic minerals, civil nuclear cooperation, and people-to-people ties.

In a post on social media platform X, the Prime Minister praised King Abdullah II’s personal commitment to advancing India–Jordan relations, particularly as both countries mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year.

“Held productive discussions with His Majesty King Abdullah II in Amman. His personal commitment towards vibrant India-Jordan relations is noteworthy. This year, we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of our bilateral diplomatic relations,” PM Modi said.

The meeting took place at the Al Husseiniya Palace, where the two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), both sides agreed to further deepen cooperation in areas including trade and investment, defence and security, counter-terrorism and de-radicalisation, fertilisers and agriculture, infrastructure, renewable energy, tourism, and heritage.

The MEA said both leaders reaffirmed their united stand against terrorism.

PM Modi arrived in Amman earlier on Monday and was received by Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, who accorded him a formal welcome. Following the talks, King Abdullah II hosted a banquet dinner in honour of the Prime Minister, reflecting the warmth of bilateral ties.

Jordan is the first leg of PM Modi’s three-nation tour. From Amman, the Prime Minister will travel to Ethiopia at the invitation of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, marking his first official visit to the African nation. The tour will conclude with a visit to Oman.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.