AMN
Campaigning has ended for the final phase of Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh at 5 PM Monday. In Manipur, it concluded at 3 PM. and voting will be held on Wednesday.
In Uttar Pradesh, 40 of the 403 constituencies will go for polls this seventh and final phase. The seven districts going to polls include Varanasi, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Mirzapur, Sant Ravidas Nagar-Bhadohi, Sonebhadra and Jaunpur.
A total of 535 candidates including 51 women are in the fray. BSP has fielded its nominees for all seats while BJP is in contest from 32 and has left 4 seats each to its allies Apana Dal and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party. Samajwadi Party’s candidates are in fray in 31 segments and its ally congress is in contest from 10 seats.
The fate these candidate will be decided by 1 crore 41 lakh voters, which includes 64.76 lakh women.
All major political parties put their best foot forward to woo the voters. For the third consecutive day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi canvassed for the party in Varanasi today where polling will be held on eight seats of the city.
The Prime Minister also appealed people to cast their vote on March 8 by saying a slogan in hindi ‘Pehle matdaan, fir jalpaan‘. Mr Modi also visited the house of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shashtri in Ram Nagar area where he paid floral tributes to the great leader.
RJD Leader Lalu Prasad Yadav also addressed rallies in Varanasi. Samajwadi Party President and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi also held public meetings in different places today.
Prestige of several political heavyweights of Uttar Pradesh is on stake in this phase of polls. Akhilesh Yadav government ministers including Paras Nath Yadav, Lalai Yadav, Kailash Chaurasia, Surendra Patel and former Minister’s Shadab Fatima, Om Prakash Singh, Vijay Misra, former MP and congress leader Rajesh Misra, senior BJP leader former MP Vidya Sagar Sonkar, former Minister Fagu Singh Chauhan, Anurag Singh and Alka Rai, controversial former MP Dhananjay Singh and strong man and BSP leaders Mukhtar Ansari and his son are trying their political luck in the last phase of elections.
In Naxal hit constituencies of Rabertsganj and Dudhhi in Sonebhadra district and Chakia in Chandauli district, voting will be concluded at 4 PM one hour earlier to schedule time.
In Manipur, which has a 60-member Assembly, voting will take place in 22 constituencies spread over 10 districts, in this second and final phase. Polling personnel along with security forces in those far flung areas have also started moving to their assigned place of duty from the district headquarters today.