Lok Sabha Election Phase 7: UP records 12.94% voter turnout till 9 am

Uttar Pradesh recorded a polling percentage of 12.94 till 9 am as voting for the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha election began at 7 am on Saturday.

Polling is being held in 13 constituencies of the state, including Varanasi, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha.

Besides Varanasi, the other seats where polling is taking place are Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon (reserved for Scheduled Castes), Ghosi, Salempur, Ballia, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Mirzapur and Robertsganj (reserved for SCs).

A total of 144 candidates -- 134 men and 10 women -- are in the fray.

According to the Election Commission (EC), the polling percentage till 9 am is -- Ballia 13.42, Bansgaon 10.37, Chandauli 14.34, Deoria 13.74, Ghazipur 13.32, Ghosi 10.32, Gorakhpur 12.99, Kushinagar 13.5, Maharajganj 14.44, Mirzapur 14.93, Robertsganj 10.74, Salempur 13.39 and Varanasi 12.66.

Uttar Pradesh sends the highest number of 80 members to the Lower House of Parliament among all states.

The bypoll for the Duddhi (ST) Assembly constituency in Sonbhadra district is also being held.

The poll percentage in Duddhi stood at 11.64 at 9 am.

Six candidates are contesting from the seat that fell vacant after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Ram Dular's disqualification following his conviction in a rape case.

According to the EC, voting for all the Lok Sabha seats in the seventh phase, barring Robertsganj, will be held from 7 am to 6 pm.

In the Robertsganj (SC) Lok Sabha seat and Duddhi (ST) Assembly constituency, voting will be held from 7 am to 4 pm.

Uttar Pradesh is witnessing a direct contest between the BJP-led NDA and INDIA bloc members Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress.

Gorakhpur has earlier been represented in the Lok Sabha by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for five times. Union ministers Mahendra Nath Pandey, Pankaj Chaudhary and Anupriya Patel are contesting from Chandauli, Maharajganj and Mirzapur respectively.

From Ghazipur, mafia don-turned-politician late Mukhtar Ansari's brother Afzal Ansari is in the fray and from Ballia, former prime minister Chandrashekhar's son Neeraj Shekhar is contesting.
Campaigning for the 13 seats ended on Thursday evening.

Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were among the star campaigners for the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) of opposition parties saw Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and his wife Dimple Yadav canvassing for its candidates.

Gandhi contested the polls from Rae Bareli in the fifth phase on May 20, Akhilesh Yadav was fielded by the SP from Kannauj that went to polls in the fourth phase on May 13 and Dimple Yadav contested from Mainpuri where voting was held in the third phase on May 7.

During campaigning, the BJP alleged that the INDIA bloc would bring in Muslim reservation and put the "Babri lock" on Ayodhya's Ram temple if voted to power.

The opposition alliance urged people not to vote for the BJP in order to "protect" the Constitution and democracy.

BJP's key allies, NISHAD Party and Om Prakash Rajbhar's Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), have fielded candidates in this phase. Another BJP ally Apna Dal (Sonelal)'s Anupriya Patel is also seeking re-election.

Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is contesting the Varanasi and Gorakhpur seats.

State Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa said there are 2,50,56,877 voters in the 13 Lok Sabha seats in this phase, including 1,33,10,897 men, 1,17,44,922 women and 1,058 third-gender electors.