Maharashtra Sees 58.2% Turnout Till 5 pm, 67.6% In Jharkhand: 10 Points

Maharashtra recorded 58.2 per cent turnout and Jharkhand saw 67.6 per cent turnout till 5 pm. Exit polls for  the two states are scheduled to be held this evening.

Maharashtra, with its 288 assembly seats, has witnessed a bitter battle between the ruling Mahayuthi -- Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, the BJP and Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party -- and the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, a coalition of Sharad Pawar's faction of the NCP, Uddhav Thackeray's faction of Shiv Sena and the Congress.

For the ruling alliance, this is a second chance to get over its setback in the Lok Sabha election, which was seen as a referendum of the political tumult of the last two years -- rebellion and split in Shiv Sena and the NCP, and the toppling of the Uddhav Thackeray government.  The Opposition is hoping to retain the voters' sympathy.

The Mahayuthi is banking heavily on the welfare schemes of the Eknath Shinde government, especially the "Ladli Behen Scheme". Mr Shinde has said their schemes cover every section of the society.

The BJP, though, has recovered its confidence after its stunning victory in Haryana in face of what many saw as massive anti-incumbency. 

The Opposition MVA has built their campaign around quota, caste census, agrarian issues and welfare schemes. But the outcome is mostly expected to depend on local issues, say party sources.

There is also uncertainty over the top post on both sides. Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena is eager to see him get the top job again. Many surveys have declared him a popular leader.

But Devendra Fadnavis, who missed the post last time due to the BJP's compulsion to keep Mr Shinde and his rebels happy, is waiting in the wings. And this time, he is being backed by the party's chief strategist Amit Shah.

In the Opposition MVA, Uddhav Thackeray is hoping for the top post. But he could be foiled by the Congress, which, after its stellar performance in the state in the Lok Sabha polls, is not ready to step aside. Senior party leader Prithviraj Chavan made it clear that the party which has more MLAs will get the top job.

In Jharkhand, this second phase of election will decide the electoral fate of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's Chief Minister Hemant Soren, his wife Kalpana Soren and Leader of Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri among others.