LS polls: 10 MP seats record 64 per cent voter turnout in third phase

A total of 64 per cent voting was recorded till 5 pm in Madhya Pradesh, where polling is underway for 10 Lok Sabha seats in the final phase amid reports of poll boycott from a village in Khargone district.

"So far 59.04 per cent electorate including 67.60 per cent men and 49.89 per cent women have cast their votes," Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer, Jaideep Govind told reporters in Bhopal. The polling figures in 10 seats across MP are as follows: Vidisha (59.35%), Dewas (60.62%), Ujjain (56.10%), Mandsaur (64.29%), Ratlam (62.14%), Dhar (59.40%), Indore (50.88%), Khargone (63.60%), Khandwa (64.59%) and Betul (50.78%).

Reports of poll boycott were received from Khargone's Satavada village (polling booth no.15), where miffed electorate did not turn up for voting alleging lack of basic facilities. Also, only five votes were polled at polling booth No.142 in Ratlam's Jaora town on the same issue, the CEO said.

Efforts are on to persuade people to exercise their right to franchise by concerned officials but they have been unrelenting so far, he said. Earlier in the day, poll officials seized Rs 10.71 lakh in two separate cases in Ratlam constituency, he said. Besides, 945 litres of country-made liquor worth Rs 1.70 lakh in Indore, 148 litre liquor worth Rs 25,000 from Betul constituency and 21 litre from Dewas were seized by poll personnel.

A total 46,133 electronic voting machines (EVMs) were used at 19,444 polling booths with 155,552 officials on poll duty.

As many as 16,960,213 electors, including 8,171,532 women, were eligible to exercise their franchise.

Tight security arrangements were made and police and paramilitary forces have been deployed for peaceful polls.

Balloting started at 7 a.m. and is slated to finish at 6 p.m.

This is the third and final round of polling in the state. The first two phases saw voting in 19 constituencies.

Of the 10 constituencies where voting is being held Thursday, the Congress had won six in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.

A poll official identified as Chaganlal in Harda district which falls under Betul constituency passed away due to cardiac arrest while on duty, Govind said. The Election Commission has sanctioned an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to his family out of which Rs two lakh will be paid immediately and the rest subsequently.