Polling concluded in 126 assembly constituencies in Assam on Thursday, with the state recording around 84.42 per cent voter turnout till 5 pm, according to figures provided by the Election Commission of India.
Voting was cast in Assam at 31,490 polling stations in 35 districts of the state, with polling starting at 7 am and ending at 5 pm, news agency PTI quoted officials as saying.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma hailed the voter turnout as “historic”, with Dalgaon recording the highest voter turnout till 5pm at 94.57 per cent. Al-Ameri district witnessed the lowest participation rate of 70.40 percent. The BJP-led NDA is seeking to win a third consecutive term in the state, while Congress is trying to regain power after a decade.
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Higher turnout than 2021 election; Assam CM hails ‘defining moment’
• Polling in Assam, which was held in a single phase on Thursday, witnessed an estimated turnout of 84.42 per cent till 5pm, and it is expected to rise further. The agency quoted officials as saying that this number is higher than the previous voting percentage of 82.04 percent in the 2021 elections.
• Assam’s CM Sarma hailed the huge turnout as “historic”, while saying the election result was “already clear – in the hope, pride and happiness on the faces of our people”. “In many polling stations, the turnout exceeds 95 percent. This is not normal. This is historic,” Sarma said, describing it as a “watershed moment.” After casting his vote in Jalukbari earlier in the day with his wife and children, Sarma expressed confidence that people would give a “decisive mandate to the BJP-led NDA”.
• Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Gaurav Gogoi also thanked people for voting in large numbers, saying they voted with the hope of “New Pur Asom” (New and Greater Assam), PTI reported. Gogoi said it was the European Commission’s “responsibility” to “ensure the security of electronic voting machines.”
• About 30 people were injured, and seven people were arrested in connection with election-related violence in the state. Of these, 25 people were injured when Congress and BJP supporters clashed in Rangamati, and three more Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) leaders were injured in a clash with BJP supporters in Khwang.
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• Over 2.5 crore voters were eligible to cast their votes in Assam, with 722 candidates in the fray. Among the 2,50,54,463 voters, there are 1,25,31,552 voters and 1,25,22,593 voters, according to the Nouakchott News Agency. There are 318 transgender voters and 63,423 serving voters.
