Election 2019 Phase 4 Voting: Key states Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, UP, Bengal voted today
Phase four of the Lok Sabha Election 2019 began at 7 am today. 72 parliamentary constituencies voted across 9 states. Coinciding with today's Lok Sabha elections of phase four were assembly elections in Odisha. This is the last phase of assembly polls in Odisha. Some of the key states that voted today are: Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Bihar. Maharashtra's capital and India's financial hub Mumbai also voted today in the crucial fourth phase of the general elections. Counting of votes for all 543 parliamentary constituencies across the country will be held on May 23, and the result will be declared the same day.
A clash broke out between Trinamool workers and security personnel at a polling booth in Asansol, West Bengal. BJP leader Babul Supriyo's car was also vandalised outside the polling booth.
Here are the highlights from the key states voting in the crucial 4th phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections today:
Election Commission issues notice to Union Minister and Begusarai BJP candidate Giriraj Singh:
The Election Commission has issued a show-cause notice to Union minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh for his communal remarks. Taking suo motu cognizance, the Begusarai district administration in Bihar had on April 25 charged Mr Singh for violating the model code of conduct and the Representation of the People Act by making controversial remarks against Muslims at a rally on April 24, where BJP president Amit Shah was also present. Addressing the rally in Begusarai, Mr Singh had said in Hindi, "Those who cannot say Vande Mataram or cannot respect the motherland, the nation will never forgive them. My ancestors died at the Simaria Ghat and did not need a grave but you need three handspans of space."
Estimated voter percentage till now for the 4th phase of Lok Sabha Election 2019:- Bihar - 53.67
- Madhya Pradesh - 65.86
- Maharashtra - 51.06
- Rajasthan - 62.86
- Uttar Pradesh - 53.12
- West Bengal - 76.47
Mukesh Ambani and his family cast their votes in Mumbai:
Reports of Bogus Voting from Jodhpur
Chief Electoral Officer of Rajasthan has sought a report after some voters in Jodhpur had leveled charges of bogus voting alleging that their votes had already been cast and when inquired, they were told that nothing can be done now, reports news agency ANI.
EC Orders FIR Against Babul Supriyo
Election Commission has ordered registeration of FIR against Babul Supriyo, Union Minister and BJP candidate from Asansol Lok Sabha seat in Bengal, for allegedly trespassing into booth number 199 and threatening a polling agent and an officer, according to news agency ANI.
Voter Turnout in Key States at 5pm
Madhya Pradesh: 57.77
Maharashtra: 42.52
Rajasthan: 54.75
Uttar Pradesh: 45.08
West Bengal: 66.46
Bihar: 44.33
Actors Vivek Oberoi and Suresh Oberoi cast their vote at a polling booth at Gandhigram school in Juhu, Mumbai.
Shah Rukh Khan and his wife Gauri Khan casting their votes at a polling booth in Bandra, Mumbai, reports news agency ANI.
Voter Turnout in Key States till 3pm
Madhya Pradesh: 49.02 per cent
Rajasthan: 54.16 per cent
Maharashtra: 55.22
Bihar: 44.23
Uttar Pradesh: 44.16
West Bengal: 66.01
More than 40% polling recorded in Bihar till 2 pm.
Voting started at 7 am in Begusarai, Ujiarpur, Darbhanga, Munger and Samastipur constituencies.
Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, after voting in Jaipur rural where he is pitted against fellow Olympian Krishna Poonia of Congress, says: "Definitely this shows the mood of the people, who want to bring back Narendra Modi as Prime Minister. This will go in BJP's favour."
Voting much more special this year, says Sachin Tendulkar
Jet Airways former chairman Naresh Goyal casts his vote at a polling booth in South Mumbai. He did not respond to questions on the grounded airline.
Sachin Tendulkar, his wife Anjali Tendulkar, daughter Sara Tendulkar, and son Arjun Tendulkar cast their vote at a polling center in Bandra, Mumbai. Sara Tendulkar and Arjun Tendulkar are first-time voters.
Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan casts her vote in Mumbai
Jitin Prasada's Sister Finds Her Vote Is Already Cast
Former Union Minister Jitin Prasada says his sister was unable to vote because her vote had already been cast by the time she reached the polling booth in the Dhaurhara Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh, according to news agency IANS.
"When my sister went to the polling booth, she found her name had been ticked and the presiding officer told her that vote had been cast. This is how fake voting is taking place," he said.
He says he would take up the matter with the Election Commission.
The District Magistrate and Returning Officer Amrit Tripathi says her name was ticked due to the fault of a polling employee. He says Mr Prasada's sister will be allowed to vote if she came to the polling centre again.
BJP candidate from Amethi, Smriti Irani and her husband Zubin Irani cast their vote at a polling booth in Versova, Mumbai.
Actors Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan cast their vote in Mumbai.
Hema Malini Casts Vote In Mumbai
Piyush Goyal Casts Vote
Union Minister and BJP leader Piyush Goyal casts his vote at Walsingham School, Malabar Hill, in Mumbai, according to news agency ANI.
"This election is now a Tsunami election. North, South, East and West, Modi wave has overtaken the country. PM Modi is the tallest leader today in the country."
Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray, his wife Rashmi Thackeray and son Aditya Thackeray cast their votes at a polling booth in Gandhi Nagar, Mumbai.
Shabana Azmi And Javed Akhtar Vote
Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar and his wife Renu Namboodiri cast their vote at a polling booth at MMK College in Bandra, Mumbai.
Chairman of Mahindra Group, Anand Mahindra, after casting his vote in Malabar Hill, says: "We all have been infected by the virus of progress and growth. Even if a coalition govt comes, it should work towards progress and growth of the country."
Erstwhile King of Jodhpur, Gaj Singh, casts his vote at a booth in Jodhpur, reports news agency ANI. BJP's Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Congress Vaibhav Gehlot are two of the candidates from the Jodhpur Lok Sabha constituency.
About 18.39% voter turnout recorded on 17 parliamentary constituencies in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections, till 11 am.
Actor Kangana Ranaut casts her vote at a polling booth in Khar, Mumbai.
Priya Dutt casts her vote at a polling booth at St Anne's High School in Bandra for the fourth phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019 She is the Congress candidate from the Mumbai North Central seat while Poonam Mahajan is the BJP candidate from the constituency.
Actors In Mumbai Cast Their Votes
Actor Anupam Kher casts his votes at a polling booth in Juhu.
Actors Bhagyashree and Sonali Bendre also cast their votes at a polling booth in Vile Parle.
Industrialists Vote In Mumbai
The Ambanis, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran and Adi Godrej were among the early voters in Mumbai.
Mr Chandrasekaran and his wife voted at a polling booth at Worli in Central Mumbai, while Mr Godrej cast his ballot in the Malabar Hill area in south Mumbai.
Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das also exercised his democratic right near his official residence at Pedder Road.
Others to cast their votes included Anil Ambani, who came in early at a booth in Cuffe Parade, and auto major Mahindra and Mahindra's managing director Pawan Goenka, who cast his vote in suburban Juhu.
Ashish Chauhan, the managing director and chief executive of Asia's oldest stock bourse BSE, also cast his vote, as did American brokerage Morgan Stanley's managing director Riddham Desai.
Poll Violence In Bengal
BJP delegation including Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Vijay Goel and Anil Baluni will meet the Election Commission today over the issue of poll-related violence during polling in West Bengal.
Babul Supriyo's Car Damaged
The vehicle of Union Minister Babul Supriyo, the BJP candidate in Asansol, has been vandalised outside a polling station, when a fight erupted between workers of the BJP and the state's ruling Trinamool Congress. Visuals showed Babul Supriyo sitting in a car with the rear windows smashed.
"Voters are not being allowed to vote," alleges Babul Supriyo. "Our fight is to establish democracy. It is shameful that I am saying this in a democratic country," he adds.
He says he will be on the road, and visit every polling station where trouble was reported. "I will take central forces with me. People are saying give us central forces, let us vote."
Clashes In Bengal's Asansol: What Happened
A fight erupted between workers of the BJP and the state's ruling Trinamool Congress.
The police used batons to control clashes outside a polling booth where BJP and Trinamool workers clashed.
The violence started after Trinamool workers insisted on continuing the voting process even though BJP activists wanted the polling to begin in the presence of central forces.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath also cast his vote earlier at a polling booth in Shikarpur, Chhindwara, where his son Nakul Nath is the Congress candidate.
Power supply tripped briefly when the chief minister and his family members were inside the polling booth, election micro-observer Narendra Singh Sisodia told PTI.
Voter Turnout Till 9:00am
Rajasthan: 13.4 per cent in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies.
Madhya Pradesh: 11.1 per cent in six parliamentary seats
Uttar Pradesh: 9.6 per cent in 13 constituencies
Voter Turnout In Bihar
An estimated 7.92 per cent voting has been recorded in the first two hours of polling in five Lok Sabha constituencies of Bihar in the fourth phase of general elections.
A total of 87.74 lakh voters would decide the fate of 66 candidates, including three women nominees, in this phase of polling in 8,834 booths. Polling is underway in the five Lok Sabha constituencies of Darbhanga, Ujiarpur, Samastipur, Begusarai and Munger.
Voter Turnout In Maharashtra
A voter turnout of 6.82 per cent has been recorded in the first two hours in Maharashtra's 17 seats as polling for the fourth and last phase of Lok Sabha elections in the state got underway. Polling began at 7 am.
The voting figures till 9 am are as follows:
Nandurbar: 8.73 per cent; Dhule: 6.31 per cent; Dindori: 7.28 per cent; Nashik: 6.69 per cent; Palghar: 7.86 per cent; Bhiwandi: 6.21 per cent; Kalyan: 5 per cent; Thane: 6.77 per cent; Mumbai-North: 7.85 per cent; Mumbai-North West: 6.90 per cent; Mumbai-North East: 7 per cent; Mumbai-North Central 5.98 per cent; Mumbai-South Central: 6.45 per cent; Mumbai-South: 5.91 per cent; Maval: 6.67 per cent; Shirur: 7.07 per cent and Shirdi 7.28 per cent.
Actor Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao vote in Mumbai
Actor Madhuri Dixit casts her vote
The actor voted at Juhu's polling booth in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Nationalist Congress Party Chief Sharad Pawar casts his vote at polling booth 31 in Tardeo in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Voter Turnout In Bengal
West Bengal records voter turnout of 16.9 per cent till 9:00am.
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Update On Violence In Bengal
Just In: Clashes erupt in West Bengal's Asansol as Trinamool workers insist that voting take place despite absence of central security forces, while BJP and CPI(M) workers say voting should be held in a secure and transparent environment - in the presence of central security forces. Police had to resort to lathicharge to disperse workers of Mamata Banerjee's party.
Watch: Mamata Banerjee's Party Workers Clash With Security Forces In Bengal's Asansol; BJP Leader's Car Vandalised
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Bengal BJP Candidate Babul Supriyo's Car Vandalised
Election 2019 Phase 4 LIVE: BJP's Babul Supriyo On Security Situation In Bengal's Asansol
Election 2019 Phase 4 LIVE: CPI candidate from Begusarai, Kanhaiya Kumar Votes In Bihar
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Actor Priyanka Chopra Casts Her Vote, Shares Photo On Twitter
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Congress's Urmila Matondkar Casts Her Vote In Mumbai
Congress candidate from Mumbai North, Urmila Mataondkar casts her vote at polling booth number 190 in Bandra.
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Constituency-wise List Of States Voting Today
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Facts About Phase 4
About 12.79 core voters in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir will decide the fate of 972 candidates.
While 17 seats in Maharashtra are going to polls in the fourth phase, 13 seats each in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, eight in West Bengal, six in Madhya Pradesh, six in Odisha, five in Bihar and three in Jharkhand vote today.
Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4 LIVE: Early Voters Today
Industrialist Anil Ambani, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das, actors Rekha, Paresh Rawal, Ravi Kishan, union minister Giriraj Singh, and BJP lawmaker Poonam Mahajan were among the prominent faces who voted minutes after polling began in their respective constituencies.
2019 Lok Sabha Elections Phase 4: PM Narendra Modi's Message To Voters
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Nakul Nath vs Nathan Shah Kavreti
Nakul Nath will be contesting from Madhya Pradesh's Chindwara seat, a constituency represented by his father and chief minister Kamal Nath for a record nine times since 1980. Nakul's father has held this seat since 1980 and lost only once. Nakul Nath has been promising to continue the development work started by his father in his constituency. Though the seat is Nakul Nath's family turf, he is being challenged by BJP candidate Nathan Shah Kavreti who is attempting to exploit the recent tax raids against Kamal Nath's former aides and the few infrequent appearances made by the chief minister in the constituency. Nathan Shah Kavreti has said his campaign "is a fight between the poor and the mafia who have money".
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Milind Deora vs Arvind Sawant
Congress Mumbai chief and former minister Milind Deora is contesting from Mumbai South constituency against the Shiv Sena's Arvind Sawant, who had defeated him by a margin of 1.28 lakh in 2014. Mr Deora recently received a glowing endorsement from industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Uday Kotak among others. In Mumbai-South, Congress is banking on small businessmen who they believe are still feeling the pinch of the central government's twin "shocks" of demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax through 2016-17.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Sakshi Maharaj vs Annu Tandon vs Pooja Pal
BJP leader Sakshi Maharaj, known for his highly controversial comments, is contesting once again from Unnao seat against the Congress candidate Annu Tandon and BSP's Pooja Pal. He had threatened his party last month before it declared him as its candidate from the constituency. Ms Tandon served as the MP from Unnao seat from 2009 to 2014 when she was defeated by Sakshi Maharaj with a massive margin.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Vaibhav Gehlot vs Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Son of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Vaibhav will be contesting national elections for the first time from the Jodhpur seat, widely considered to be his father's home turf. He is up against Union minister and BJP candidate Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in the high-stakes electoral battle. The union minister is quite confident, since the constituency is dominated by the Rajputs, a social group considered to be a vote bank for the BJP. Mr Shekhawat defeated Congress's Chandresh Kumari by over four lakh votes in the 2014 elections and is hoping to repeat the feat in the polls on April 29.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Upendra Kushwaha vs Nityanand Rai
Rashtriya Lok Samata Party chief and former BJP ally Upendra Kushwaha will be contesting from two seats, but the Ujiarpur seat is going to a prestige battle as goes up against Bihar BJP chief Nityanand Rai. The RLSP chief quit the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and exited the BJP-led NDA in December last year, after months of airing his growing resentment with the ruling party and its seat-share deal with another ally, Nitish Kumar, for the national election. Mr Rai had won the seat in 2014 by a margin of 1.5 lakh votes. Also contesting from the seat is the CPI(M)'s Ajay Kumar.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Babul Supriyo vs Moon Moon Sen
Union Minister Babul Supriyo, a singer-turned-politician is up against a member of his fraternity, actor-turned-politician Moon Moon Sen in the Asansol constituency. The high-profile contest has garnered a lot of interest since Moon Moon Sen, called the "giant slayer" of Trinamool Congress, defeated nine-time Left lawmaker from Bengal's Bankura in 2014. However, even Babul Supriyo recorded a huge win in his first election in 2014 and is equally confident. Moon Moon Sen is the daughter of legendary Bengali actress Suchitra Sen.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Salman Khurshid vs Mukesh Rajput vs Manoj Agarwal
UP's Farrukhabad is a seat which is not dominated by a single caste or religion. Former union minister and Congress leader Salman Khurshid is contesting against sitting MP and BJP leader Mukesh Rajput. The seat is locked in a three-cornered contest between Congress, BJP and the opposition alliance which has fielded BSP leader Manoj Agarwal. Muslims, though a little over 14 per cent in this constituency, could still decide the fate of this Lok Sabha seat along with the Yadavs. A division of votes will likely benefit the BJP. Another challenge for the opposition will be overcoming the "Modi factor".
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Dimple Yadav vs Subrat Pathak
Dimple Yadav, a two-time lawmaker from Kannauj, will be seeking a third term this time. The seat was previously held by her husband Akhilesh Yadav, now chief of the Samajwadi Party. In 2012, after Mr Yadav went on to become Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Dimple Yadav was elected unopposed from Kannauj as major political parties decided to skip the by-election. This time, the BJP has fielded Subrat Pathak, a candidate she had defeated in 2014. However, winning the seat won't be easy for Dimple Yadav this time, since Mr Pathak is using her inaccessibility to the people of the constituency to push his case.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Baijayant Panda vs Anubhav Mohanty
Baijayant Panda, or Jay Panda as he is known, will be contesting from the Kendrapara seat once again, but this time on a BJP ticket. The four-time parliamentarian from joined the BJP months before elections after quitting from Odisha's Biju Janata Dal last year. The BJD has fielded Rajya Sabha member and filmstar-turned politician Anubhav Mohanty against Mr Panda. "People of Kendrapara will never spare the traitor," Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had said.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Key Contests In Phase 4
Kanhaiya Kumar vs Giriraj Singh vs Tanveer Ahmed
Kanhaiya Kumar, former JNU student union president is the CPI's candidate from Begusarai in Bihar. The 32-year-old's candidacy apparently came at the cost of a potential alliance between the Left front and LaluYadav's Rashtriya Janata Dal. Begusarai is a stronghold seat for the RJD which was not willing to yield. Lalu Yadav's party has fielded Tanvir Hasan, who lost in 2014 to the BJP's candidate by a margin of 60,000 votes. This time, the BJP has fielded Giriraj Singh, a Union Minister known for his controversial pronouncements.
General Elections 2019: Facts And Stats
More than 12 crore (120 million) people across nine states are eligible to vote in phase four of the Lok Sabha elections today. Among them, a large swathe of Hindi-speaking India, which has been a stronghold of the BJP, votes today. The BJP had done astonishingly well in the 2014 elections in these states.
With this phase, elections are beginning in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan - some of the BJP's strongest backers in 2014 which turned to Congress in state elections held last year. Usually, if national polls are held within one year of state polls, the same party plays the favourites. But some factors have been known to break this trend.
This is the last round of voting in Maharashtra where 17 seats are polling today including six in Mumbai - the country's business and entertainment capital. And all of them are geared for appropriately eye-catching contests. Voting also ends in Odisha where the BJP hopes have made up for losses in other states.
Along with several big names, this phase also has highest proportion of candidates with criminal cases against them, the most number of crorepatis and women candidates. See
complete list here
Top contenders in this round include Kanhaiya Kumar (CPI), Giriraj Singh (BJP), Dimple Yadav (SP), Salman Khurshid (Congress), Sakshi Maharaj (BJP), Milind Deora (Congress), Poonam Mahajan (BJP), Priya Dutt (Congress), Babul Supriyo (BJP), S S Ahluwalia (BJP), Moon Moon Sen (Trinamool Congress), Manvendra Singh (Congress), Dushyant Singh (BJP), Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (BJP) and Jay Panda (BJP).
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Phase 4 A Key Test For The BJP
The Hindi heartland, at the heart of the BJP's spectacular win in 2014, is voting in the fourth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections today.
In 2014, the BJP and its allies had won 56 of the 72 seats up for grabs today - an impressive strike rate of 77 per cent but an equally large score to defend.
From more than half-a-dozen union ministers to movie stars - there are several high-profile contenders whose fortunes will be decided today.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: When Will The Result Phase 4 Be Declared?
Counting of votes for all 543 parliamentary constituencies across the country will be held on May 23, and the result will be declared the same day.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Is Mumbai Voting Today?
Yes, Maharashtra's capital and India's financial hub Mumbai also votes today in the crucial fourth phase of the general elections.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Which States Are Voting In Phase 4?
The nine states that are voting in phase four of the general elections 2019 are: Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Which Are The Key States Voting In Phase 4?
Some of the key states that are voting today are: Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Bihar.
Lok Sabha Elections 2019 LIVE: Which States Have Assembly Elections Today?
Coinciding with today's Lok Sabha elections are assembly elections in Odisha. This is the last phase of assembly polls in Odisha, which voted in four phases overall.
Phase four of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections began at 7 am today. 72 parliamentary constituencies are voting across 9 states.