Bihar records 68.79 pc turnout in phase 2; polling remains peaceful (Round Up)

Patna, Nov 11 (IANS) The second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections concluded peacefully on Tuesday, recording a voter turnout of 68.79 per cent, with data from around 2,000 polling booths still pending, according to Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Vinod Singh Gunjiyal.

He said the average turnout in the first and second phases stands at 66.90 per cent, which is 9.6 per cent higher than the previous Assembly election and a historic high since the 1951-52 election.

The total percentage of male voters turned out at 62.8 per cent and female 71.60 per cent in both phases.

For the second phase, the Election Commission deployed 122 general observers, 34 expenditure observers, 20 police observers, and 2,224 micro observers.

The Commission received 230 complaints, all of which were resolved promptly, Gunjiyal said.

Security agencies made seizures worth Rs 3.52 crore during this phase, including liquor, drugs, and banned substances worth Rs 1.7 crore, while the rest comprised cash and freebies.

Since the implementation of the Model Code of Conduct, items worth Rs 127 crore have been seized across Bihar — including Rs 78 crore worth of liquor and contraband.

Gunjiyal noted that no incidents of violence were reported from any polling station in the second phase.

A total of 1,302 candidates were in the fray in the second phase, including 1,165 men, 136 women and one third-gender candidate.

In this phase, polling is being held in 122 constituencies — 101 general, 19 SC reserved and 2 ST reserved seats.

According to the Election Commission, 3,70,13,556 electors are eligible to vote in this round.

This includes 10,21,812 new voters added to the rolls.

Among them 1, 95,56,899 electors are enrolled in the voter list are male, including 5,28,954 new male electors included in the roll after SIR.

Similarly, a total of 1,70,68,572 female voters are in the list, including 4,92,839 newly added in the list.

The third gender voters are 943, including 90 newly added to the list.

A total of 7,69,356 electors are in the 18–19 age group.

For Phase-2, the ECI was set up at 45,399 polling stations — 5,326 urban and 40,073 rural.

These include 595 women-managed booths, 91 PwD-managed booths, and 316 model stations.

Across the two phases combined, 2,616 candidates were in the fray, and the total electorate was 7.45 crore.

The CEO highlighted several new measures adopted this election.

“We achieved 100 per cent webcasting, with live feeds monitored directly from all polling booths. Two CCTV cameras — one inside and one outside — were installed at each polling booth. This is the first time such extensive live webcasting has been conducted in the country,” he said.

He added that 1,592 polling stations were located in Naxal-affected areas.

“In previous elections, booths in these zones had to be relocated. This time, not a single booth was shifted, and polling was held peacefully. We didn’t even require helicopters to transport polling teams,” he said.

Gunjiyal also said the ECI introduced a series of logistical innovations — GPS tracking for vehicles carrying EVMs and VVPATs, improved ballot paper quality with larger fonts and coloured candidate photographs, and GPS-enabled devices for boats carrying polling officers in flood-prone and Diara areas.

“All polling materials were distributed systematically in carry bags, and mobile deposit facilities were provided,” the CEO added.

Additional Director General (ADG) of Police and Nodal Officer for Election Security, Kundan Krishnan, said that security arrangements were significantly strengthened across Bihar since the implementation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

“A total of 1,625 companies of the Central Paramilitary Forces were deployed during the election. In addition, Bihar Military Police (BMP) and state police personnel were also mobilised to ensure smooth and peaceful polling,” Krishnan said.

He added that in this election, polling was successfully conducted in several hyper-sensitive, Naxal-affected areas where voting had not taken place for nearly two decades.

“In past elections, many booths were relocated due to security threats — such as Taracua, Bichulia, and Barha under Chakarbandha police station in Imamganj constituency (Gaya district), and Chormara village under Barhat police station in Jamui district. This time, villagers in these areas cast their votes in their own villages for the first time in 20 years,” he said.

Krishnan added that polling was also conducted in Adhora and Rehal areas of Kaimur, both witnessing elections after two decades.

“In Chormara, 44 per cent of voters turned out, while around 70 per cent polling was recorded in the Chakarbandha area. There were no incidents of violence at any polling booth. Minor issues were reported but were resolved immediately,” he stated.

Between Monday evening and Tuesday evening, police arrested 990 individuals for various offences and seized 10 vehicles, Krishnan informed.

Since the enforcement of the MCC, authorities have seized 844 arms across the state.

--IANS

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