Bengal bypolls: Over 14 pc average positive vote swing for TMC
Trinamul Congress has witnessed an average 14 per cent positive vote swing in its favour in the bypolls.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday landed in Gujarat, yet again to cast his vote in the ongoing second phase of Assembly polls.
Dressed in a white kurta-pyjama and dark blue jacket, Modi reached the Nishan High School, Ranip at around 12 noon and patiently waited in queue to practice his franchise for the Sabarmati seat in Ahmedabad.
As Modi stepped out of the polling centre, a massive crowd that had built up outside broke into chants of “Modi, Modi” as the prime minister gently waived at them and flashed his finger with the indelible voting ink mark.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah cast his vote from his former assembly constituency, Naranpura which he had vacated to contest for a Rajya Sabha seat.
Many other senior leaders including Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley too cast his vote in Vejalpur region of Ahmedabad while LK Advani cast his ballot in Khanpur area of Ahmedabad.
Earlier in the day, Modi had urged the people of Gujarat to come out and vote in record numbers.
“Today is Phase 2 of the Gujarat elections. I request all those voting today to vote in record numbers and enrich this festival of democracy,” PM Modi tweeted.
The second phase of the assembly polls began at 8 am in Gujarat. The first phase of the Gujarat Elections 2017, held on December 9, registered over 60 per cent polling.
In the second phase, as many as 93 assembly constituencies across 14 districts in northern and central regions went for polling.
So far, the campaign has witnessed a bitter battle between the Congress party and the BJP.
As many as 851 candidates are in the fray. A total of 25,575 polling booths have been set up in 14,523 regions.
Elections are being held in Banaskantha, Patan, Sabarkantha, Mehsana, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, Aravalli, Mahisagar, Panchmahal, Dahod, Kheda, Anand, Vadodara and Chhota Udepur districts from 8 am to 5 pm.
Special deployment of police has been made to ensure law and order in the poll-bound regions. The Election Commission has deployed hundreds of companies of the Central Armed Police Forces, 12 companies of Rapid Action Force and 19 companies of the State Reserve Police Force for the assembly polls.
Advertisement