Polling for the five Lok Sabha constituencies begins in Bihar, 10.18% voting registered till 9 a.m.

Patna, May 13, 2024: Polling for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections began across five constituencies in Bihar, including in Darbhanga, Begusarai, Munger, Ujiarpur and Samastipur, at 7 a.m. on Monday. Polling will continue till 6 p.m.

As per the official data, the state recorded an average voter turnout of 10.18% by 9 a.m.

Darbhanga led with 11.61% followed by Samastipur (11.11%), Munger (10.26%), Ujiarpur (9.31%), and Begusarai (8.85).

A total of 55 candidates, including four women, are in the fray.

Of these, 14 belong to national or regional parties, 20 to smaller parties, and 21 are independents.

The poll body has set up 9,447 polling stations, with 4810 monitored through webcasting to ensure fair and transparent polling.

The political stakes are high for NDA, which had won all five of these seats in 2019.

Two Union Ministers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet—Giriraj Singh (Begusarai) and Nityanand Rai (Ujiarpur)—are seeking re-election.

In Samastipur, a closely watched contest is underway between Shambhavi Choudhary of the LJPRV, daughter of Bihar Minister Ashok Choudhary, and Sunny Hazari, son of another Bihar Minister, Maheshwar Hazari.

In Munger, JDU leader and former party president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh faces RJD’s Anita Devi, while in Darbhanga, BJP Gopal Ji Thakur is pitted against RJD’s Lalit Yadav.

In Ujiarpur, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai faces RJD Alok Mehta.

Voter participation and incidents in the fourth phase of polling:

Voters turned out early across Munger, Begusarai, Ujiarpur, Samastipur, and Darbhanga constituencies to exercise their franchise.

Former Chief Minister Karpoori Thakur’s son Ramnath Thakur cast his vote at booth number 64 in his native Karpoori Gram village, saying, “I have voted for development and peace of the country.”

In Begusarai, Union Minister Giriraj Singh offered prayers at the Jagdamba Temple before casting his vote in Lakhisarai district.

Constituency overview:

Samastipur (SC-reserved) has 6 assembly constituencies, including Kusheshwarsthan, Hayaghat, Kalyanpur, Warisnagar, Samastipur, and Rosera.

It has a total of 18,18,530 voters, including 9,55,215 male, 8,63,287 female and 28 third gender.

Darbhanga has Gaura Bauram, Benipur Alinagar, Darbhanga, Rural, Darbhanga City and Bahadurpur assembly segments.

A total of 17,81,356 voters are in the Darbhanga Lok Sabha constituency, including 9,36,356 male, 9,36,591 female and 35 third genders.

Ujiarpur Lok Sabha constituency comprises Patepur, Morwa, Ujiarpur, Sarairanjan, Mohiuddinagar, and Vibhutipur.

It has a total number of 17,45,408 voters, including 9,19,919 male, 8,25,469 female and 20 third gender voters.

The fourth phase is crucial for both the NDA and the Grand Alliance, as they look to consolidate their respective positions in Bihar.

With polling brisk since morning, the final turnout by evening is expected to be significantly higher.

Also Read: Tejashwi Yadav said NDA leaders went into depression after the second phase of polling in Bihar.

EOM.