Lucknow: Around 52 per cent votes were polled amidst sporadic incidents of violence till 3 pm on Saturday for the seventh and final phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, marking the end of the month-long exercise.
Polling for the 60 seats, nearly half of which were bagged by BSP last time, in ten districts began at 7 AM and 51.9 per cent polling was registered till 3 PM, Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha said.
The maximum 55 per cent polling was registered in Lakhimpur, followed by 53 per cent in Bijnor. Bheemnagar recorded 52 per cent polling, Bareilly 50 per cent, Pilibhit 52 per cent, Shahjahanpur 51 per cent and Badaun 49.83 per cent voting, he said.
Meanwhile at Ujhani area in Badaun, JD(U) candidate for Shekhupura seat, Sanjeev Gupta, was assaulted allegedly by SP supporters. In another incident at Pilibhit district, BJP and Congress men gheraoed a police station after some workers were detained.
Trouble started when DSP Rafeeq Ahmad allegedly assaulted some BJP and Congress booth workers and took them to the police station where the candidates of both the parties created a ruckus along with their supporters.
Following the incident Ahmad was removed from poll duty. At a booth in Jahangirabad in Sahaswan seat of Badaun, sitting MLA D P Yadav had dispute with security forces after he was prevented from entering the booth with his supporters. More than 1.82 crore voters would decide the electoral fate of 962 candidates, including some political veterans in Bijnore, Moradabad, Bheem Nagar, Rampur, Jyotiba Phule Nagar, Badaun, Bareilly, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur and Lakhimpur. Earlier scheduled for February four, this phase was later postponed to March three. (PTI)
