75 per cent voters turn out recorded in ZP-PS elections

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The elections to the 63 Zilla Parishad groups (guts) and 126 Panchayat Samiti constituencies (gans) were held peacefully today. According to preliminary data released by the election administration, an average turnout of 75 per cent was recorded across the 2,282 polling stations in nine tehsils of the district.

The elections were held from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm. By 3.30 pm, polling had reached 52 per cent, while the final two hours alone witnessed an additional 23 per cent turnout. The surge in voting during the closing hours is expected to prove a potential game-changer in the election outcome. Of the total 18.73 lakh voters (including 9.79 lakh males, 8.93 lakh females and 41 others), 14.50 lakh voters exercised their votes.

At several polling centres across the district, voting continued even after the official closing time of 5.30 pm. These included polling stations in tehsils such as Kannad, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Sillod, where voters who had entered the premises before the deadline were allowed to cast their votes till the late evening.

Polling largely peaceful barring a few isolated incidents

Except for a few sporadic incidents, the polling process across the district was conducted peacefully. During the day, reports of minor disputes, confusion, pushing and shoving, and allegations surfaced at some places. The entry of MLA Vilas Bhumre along with his sons into a polling station, a scuffle in Sillod, a malfunction in an EVM in Waluj, and discussions over alleged bogus voting briefly stirred the political atmosphere.

Polling commenced at 7.30 am and gained momentum after 10.30 am. Due to long queues outside several polling stations, voting continued late into the evening, and official turnout figures were not available until late at night.

District Collector Deelip Swami visited polling stations at Sawangi-Harsul and at select centres in Phulambri tehsil to review the arrangements. Guardian Minister Sanjay Shirsat, MP Sandipan Bhumre, and Uddhav Sena district president Ambadas Danve also visited polling centres. Tight security arrangements were in place, with revenue officials, police personnel and home guard jawans deployed at polling stations.

Polling remains peaceful

Deelip Swami said, “In a few places, voting machines were replaced due to technical issues. Barring minor rumours and isolated incidents, no untoward incident was reported. Preliminary figures indicate an average voter turnout of around 75 per cent.”