New Delhi: Polling was held across 8 states/UTs in this phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024. The 58 seats where polling was held included all 10 seats in Haryana and all 7 in Delhi, besides 14 in Uttar Pradesh, 8 each in Bihar and West Bengal, 6 in Odisha, 4 in Jharkhand and 1 in Jammu and Kashmir. Of the 58 seats, BJP won 40, BJD and BSP won 4 each and TMC and JD(U) 3 each in 2019.
In the fray in this phase were Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, former Haryana CM Manohar Lal, former J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti, former Union minister Maneka Gandhi and Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar, among others.
Voting was also held simultaneously in 42 assembly seats in Odisha.
Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase 6:
09:00 pm: Updates to this blog have ended.
08:00 pm: The ECI said Saturday that the Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat in Jammu and Kashmir witnessed the highest voter turnout in 35 years at 51.35 percent. Voting now stands concluded in all three parliamentary seats in the Valley and two seats in Jammu.
Anantnag-Rajouri PC makes history, as it records its highest turnout in last 35 years, at 51.35 % in General Elections 2024
With this, all three PCs in Kashmir valley have now recorded highest voter turnouts now
Details : https://t.co/ZIDdJbjJkS pic.twitter.com/BVHorco3Lm
— Spokesperson ECI (@SpokespersonECI) May 25, 2024
07:45 pm: Delhi recorded a voter turnout of approximately 53.73 percent until 5 pm across its seven Lok Sabha constituencies. While North East Delhi constituency recorded 57.97 percent, the New Delhi seat had the lowest voting percentage at 50.44 percent.
07:30 pm: Jharkhand Chief Electoral Officer K Ravi Kumar said that in Giridih, the voter turnout stands at 65.44 per cent. In Dhanbad, it is 58.90 per cent. In Ranchi, it is 58.73 per cent. In Jamshedpur, it is 66.79 per cent. “This data, however, will be updated later,” he added as sixth phase of polling concluded in the state.
07:15 pm: On PM Modi’s remarks in Patna earlier today, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav spoke to the media. He said, “A 75-year-old man is threatening a 34-year-old youth that if you defeat us in the election, we will send you to jail…the public will decide.”
Meanwhile, EVMs have been sealed at a polling booths in Delhi’s Lodhi Colony, Bihar’s East Champaran and Motihari, and West Bengal’s Bishnupur.
07:00 pm: Addressing a press conference in Bhubaneswar, Odisha Chief Electoral Officer Nikunja Bihari Dhal said, “There was a error (sic) in the controlling unit so sets had to be replaced and new sets had to be deployed. With new sets of EVMs voting continued.”
06:45 pm: The sixth phase of polling concludes in Jharkhand’s Ranchi and Bihar’s Sheohar. Officials seal EVMs at the polling booths.
Meanwhile, six persons were injured in a clash outside a polling station in J&K’s Mendhar in Poonch district, The Indian Express reported. Voting continued in the booth while an FIR has been registered and investigation is underway.
06:30 pm: 51.88% voter turnout recorded in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag-Rajouri till 5pm. Overall 57.7% voter turnout recorded across eight states and union territories till 5pm.
06:20 pm: Samajwadi Party’s Dharmendra Yadav has demanded the deployment of paramilitary forces in Azamgarh after alleged booth capturing by the BJP. (Inputs from Shikha Salaria)
06:15 pm: BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa in a recent interview said that two “fraudsters” in India need to be exposed. “Arvind Kejriwal has voted today for Congress. What is amazing is, that Rahul Gandhi has voted for AAP. And both these leaders are against each other in Punjab. Arvind Kejriwal has voted for the biggest frauds, who were involved in the Bofors scam, and those who were accused in the 1984 riots,” he added.
06:00 pm: In West Bengal, BJP candidate from Jhargram Lok Sabha seat, Pranat Tudu was allegedly attacked today by miscreants when he was visiting booth number 200 in Monglapota in the parliamentary constituency. Responding to the attack, Tudu said, “We got information yesterday that BJP voters in Monglapota are not being allowed to vote. Due to this, we came to this area to check what was the problem. Here around 200 people attacked us with lathis, stones and some weapons. We could have been murdered if Central forces would not have been there…We did not get any protection from the local police…Didi doesn’t want to impose CAA and make the country into Pakistan.”
05:40 pm: INDIA Alliance candidate Somnath Bharti took to X(formerly twitter) to bring to the ECI’s attention the voter slips issued by BJP’s table at a polling booth. The voter slip as per the image shared by Bharti has a picture of BJP candidate from New Delhi Bansuri Swaraj.
BJP’s table at Booth no 29, Kalibari area is issuing such voters’ slips. @ECISVEEP is it allowed?? pic.twitter.com/g9EMVHtXLi
— Adv. Somnath Bharti: इंसानियत से बड़ा कुछ नहीं! (@attorneybharti) May 25, 2024
05:00 pm: CJI DY Chandrachud cast his vote in Delhi in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections. “Today I fulfilled my duty as a citizen by casting my vote,” he said.
Union Minister and BJP candidate from Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat Dharmendra Pradhan reiterated the duty to vote as he cast his vote in Bhubaneshwar today. “This time all 21 Lok Sabha seats from Odisha will go in favor of BJP… I am very happy to vote in Bhubaneswar and this time there will be a change in our state as well,” he added.
4:40 pm: CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat condemned PM Modi’s ‘mujra’ remark which he made in Patna earlier today. “Words that the Prime Minister has used in his latest speech in Patna are highly condemnable. I don’t know where he gets such words from. Must be his ‘Sangh parivar’ culture. The substantive issue is that of reservations and the fact of the matter is that under the Modi government over the last 10 years, the rights of reservation have been severely diluted,” he said.
Also read: Both Modi and Priyanka Gandhi are now on TV—only one of them is asked follow-up questions
04:00 pm: According to EC data, voter turnout across the country reached 49.20 percent in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha polls. West Bengal recorded the highest turnout at over 70 percent and UP was the lowest at 48.44 percent.
03:45 pm: Odisha’s BJD candidate from Puri Assembly constituency Sunil Mohanty urged voters to go out and exercise their rights. “The Constitution of India has given you voting rights. You have the choice to select your representative, who will work for you for the next five years. Give your local leaders a chance to take on responsibilities,” he said.
Meanwhile voter turnout in the six parliamentary seats in the state and 42 assembly seats reached 48.44 per cent till 3pm.
03:15 pm: Voters in Jaunpur in UP have alleged that Muslims have been beaten up by people who arrived in police vehicles. They have requested police not to resort to highhandedness and not differentiate between Hindu-Muslims. (Inputs from Shikha Salaria)
03:08 pm: Rakesh Daulatabad, Independent MLA from Badshahpur in Gurugram, died of a heart attack today. After casting his vote he went to his farmhouse in the morning where he suffered a heart attack. He was rushed to a private hospital where he was declared dead. Daulatabad was one of the the two independent MLAs supporting the Nayab Saini government in Haryana. (Inputs from Sushil Manav)
02:45 pm: Odisha Governor Raghubar Das cast his vote in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.
02:30 pm: BJP leader Arvinder Singh Lovely says, “I appeal to people to celebrate this festival of democracy. AAP leader Sandeep Pathak also urged voters of Delhi. “They should all vote taking the country into consideration. I hope everyone will vote. Despite hot weather, everyone should come out and vote,” he said.
02:10 pm: At the mid-way mark, the highest voter turnout has been recorded in West Bengal and the lowest in Delhi. J&K’s Anantnag-Rajouri recorded 35.61 percent voter turnout till 1 pm, CEO J&K said.
Here is the state-wise breakup until 1 pm in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections.
Bihar – 36.48%
Haryana – 36.48%
Jammu & Kashmir – 35.22%
Jharkhand – 42.54%
Delhi – 34.37%
Odisha – 35.69%
Uttar Pradesh -37.23%
West Bengal – 54.80%
02:00 pm: Former Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni cast his vote today in the sixth phase of voting for the Lok Sabha Elections.
01:45 pm: “Are you not seeing that our party polling agent has been sent out of here? Why are you letting West Bengal Police come inside the polling booth?” BJP candidate from Medinipur Lok Sabha seat, Agnimitra Paul, tells the Central forces personnel, alleging that BJP’s polling agents are not being allowed inside polling booths in Keshiary.
01:30 pm: AAP leader Atishi alleges that the presiding officer tried to get the polling agents to sign the Form 17(C) in the morning in Captain Anuj Nayyar School in New Delhi’s Janakpuri. Moreover, an election officer has given directions that Polling Agents cannot note down any data in Govt School No.3 in New Delhi’s Kalkaji, she further alleges. “Is the plan to manipulate voting numbers by the @ECISVEEP?” she asks the Election Commission of India.
Also read: Issue of form 17C not decided, says SC to poll body’s argument that it was a ‘settled’ matter
01:15 pm: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan casts his vote at a polling booth in New Delhi’s Hauz Khas. Speaking to media, he says that India will soon emerge as a real power in the world. “As far as election is concerned, this is the festival of democracy. Celebration of the sovereignty of the people of India. It’s a great feeling to be part of it,” he adds.
01:05 pm: AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj shares a video from outside GK1 Police Station in Delhi with four tables of BJP. Calling it a “blatantly illegal act”, he accused the LG, the police of “conniving with the BJP”. In West Bengal too, the AITMC claims that five EVMs in Bankura’s Raghunathpur were found with BJP tags on them.
12:55 pm: Itlija Mufti, Media Advisor to PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti has brought to attention about a “deliberate” attempt to slow down voting in Anantnag’s polling station 26. A similar complaint had been made by Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat as she failed to cast her vote to which the ECI responded by saying, “Battery was replaced in 15 minutes and voting resumed. Presently, voting is going smoothly.”
Responding to BJP candidate from Odisha’s Puri Lok Sabha constituency Sambit Patra’s complaint on non-functioning EVMs, the District Election Officer Puri called such allegations “baseless” and untrue.
12:45 pm: All India Trinamool Congress has alleged rigging of votes by BJP MLA from Nandigram, Suvendu Adhikari. In a post on X(formerly twitter), the party wrote: “This is the Suvendu Adhikari model of conducting elections – rigging votes when they can’t win people’s mandate! Where are the Central Forces now and Election Commission now?”
12:35 pm: TMC workers block roads in West Bengal’s West Midnapore where they protest against BJP’s candidate from Ghatal Lok Sabha seat, Hiranmoy Chatterjee. Security forces urge them to remove the blockade.
VIDEO | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: TMC workers protest against BJP's candidate from #Ghatal Lok Sabha seat Hiranmoy Chatterjee in West Midnapore, West Bengal. Security forces urge protesters to remove road blockade.#LSPolls2024WithPTI #LokSabhaElections2024
(Full video… pic.twitter.com/qbQcH1iqJG
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 25, 2024
12:30 pm: Dr Arvind Sharma, BJP candidate from Rohtak Lok Sabha seat, casts his vote in Haryana’s Jhajjar. Speaking to the media, Sharma said that the administration is on alert to avoid any snatching in polling booths. “I am hopeful that Lotus will bloom on all 10 seats in Haryana…ECI has said that at a time only one voter can enter the booth. But in some places, people tag along with the voter inside the voting booth. Administration is strict and alert,” he said.
12:20 pm: Congress candidate from Rohtak Lok Sabha seat, Deepender Singh Hooda casts his vote in Rohtak’s Sanghi village, says, “Congress will win the Rohtak seat. The people of Haryana have decided to bring change for their future and to save the Constitution.”
10 seats in Haryana have gone to polls today in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections.
12:10 pm: Delhi has recorded a 21.69 percent turnout till 11 am, with the highest turnout at 24.49 percent recorded in the northeast Delhi constituency.
After casting his vote in Delhi, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal told the media that it would be difficult to determine what the “outcome” would be, “In different parts of the country, there are different issues. I don’t think we can innumerate a particular issue. Those who are in rural areas think differently than those in urban areas.”
12:00 pm: Former Union Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan and Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan cast their votes along with their wives in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections.
11:45am: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal cast his vote along with his family. “I have voted against dictatorship, inflation and unemployment. I appeal to people to come out and vote,” he said.
Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, BJP candidate Manoj Tiwari and Congress candidate Kanhaiya Kumar have also cast their votes.
11:30 am: President Droupadi Murmu cast her vote at the polling station in Dr. Rajendra Prasad Kendriya Vidyalaya inside the Rashtrapati Bhavan complex. The “pink booth” inside the Rashtrapati Bhavan is completely managed by women staff. There are 70 such polling stations in Delhi alone.
According to the Election Commission, seven polling booths have been designated to be managed by persons with disabilities in an attempt to make elections more accessible and inclusive.
Also read: What’s the ‘nari shakti’ in 2024 polls? BJP has 1 in 6 women candidates, Congress 1 in 7
11:20 am: Chaos erupted in Delhi as the polling agent of Congress candidate from Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha seat JP Agarwal, Mudit Agarwal alleged that the control unit and ballot units at booth no. 79 (Ranbasera) did not work. He also claimed that police threatened to arrest him.
Delhi’s polling booths saw minister Kailash Gahlot and Congress candidate Udit Raj cast their votes. Delhi’s 7 seats go to polls today.
11:10 am: After he cast his vote in New Moti Bagh, Delhi, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar spoke to the media and assured that the voting process has been peaceful. “Peaceful voting is going on in Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar,” he said. He also addressed the cases filed in the Supreme Court against ECI and EVMs and said, “An attempt is being made to create an atmosphere of doubt, one day we will tell everyone about it and will reveal how people are misled.”
11:00 am: Dronacharya awardee and wrestling coach Mahavir Singh Phogat casts his vote at a polling centre in Charkhi Dadri, Haryana in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections. Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik cast his vote and speaking to the press, he said, “I request all voters especially young voters to come out and vote.”
10:50 am: Somanth Bharti, MLA from Malviya Nagar, Delhi, and INDIA alliance candidate for Lok Sabha elections has claimed that BJP polling agents have been “carrying pamphlets inside polling booths” 134, 135, 137 and 138 of AC-43.
Shocked to report that every polling agent of @BJP4India is carrying candidates pamphlets inside the polling booth and shamelessly displaying the same fearing no one. Sharing video of what I saw inside booth no 134,135,137 and 138 of AC-43. @ECISVEEP pic.twitter.com/4DBxCm1zIq
— Adv. Somnath Bharti: इंसानियत से बड़ा कुछ नहीं! (@attorneybharti) May 25, 2024
10:40 am: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the Congress’ General Secretary cast her vote in the sixth phase of elections in New Delhi today. Rahul Gandhi shares picture with mother and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi after casting their vote.
Meanwhile, PM Narendra Modi has also taken to social media to encourage citizens to vote in large numbers. “Every vote counts, make yours count too! Democracy thrives when its people are engaged and active in the electoral process,” he wrote.
10:30 am: PDP chief and candidate from Anantnag, J&K Mehbooba Mufti has alleged that PDP polling agents & workers have been “detained” a few hours before the election. The politician has also alleged the involvement of SSP Anantnag, DIG South Kashmir and the LG in this matter.
Many of our PDP polling agents & workers are being detained just before voting. When the families went to the police stations they are being told that its being done at the behest of SSP Anantnag & DIG South Kashmir. We’ve written to @ECISVEEP hoping for their timely… pic.twitter.com/iPQx8L7JLK
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) May 24, 2024
10:20 am: External Affairs Minister DR S Jaishankar calls elections a “decisive moment for the country” as he proudly shares on social media an image of him with a voting certificate after he cast his vote in New Delhi today.
10.00 am: Polling began at 7 am Friday in 58 seats across 8 states/UTs including all 10 seats in the national capital. Among those who voted in the early hours were President Droupadi Murmu, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini, former Haryana CM Manohar Lal, former Haryana Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala and Jharkhand Governor CP Radhakrishnan.
Former Congress presidents Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, along with Election Commissioner Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, former Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik also exercised their right to vote in their respective constituencies within the first few hours of polling.
Also Read: Phase 6—gains and losses for BJP in east, setback in Haryana & Delhi