1st Phase Voting Begins In 102 Lok Sabha Constituencies In India, 5 In Assam

Voting for the first phase of Lok Sabha general elections is set to begin on Friday (April 19) with a total of 102 constituencies across 21 states and union territories heading to polls.

In Assam, voting will be done in five Lok Sabha constituencies - Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Jorhat, Kaziranga, and Dibrugarh.

Notable candidates in the fray will be BJP's Kamakhya Prasad Tasa and Congress' Roselina Tirkey from Kaziranga. In Lakhimpur, Uday Shankar Hazarika of Congress will fight it out against Pradan Baruah of BJP, while Dibrugarh will see a battle between AJP's Lurinjyoti Gogoi and BJP's central minister and former Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal with Manoj Dhanowar holding an outside chance. In Jorhat, Gaurav Gogoi of Congress will face off against Topon Kumar Gogoi of BJP. Sonitpur will witness Congress candidate Premlal Ganju and BJP candidate Ranjit Dutta in the fray.

Campaigning for the first phase of Lok Sabha elections concluded on Wednesday as political parties conducted their final rallies with voting scheduled for today.

The BJP focused on PM Modi's popularity, while the Opposition INDIA bloc targeted issues like unemployment and farmer distress. Modi extensively campaigned, with BJP's manifesto centered around his assurances, while the INDIA bloc concentrated on promises for women, youth, and farmers.

In the 2019 elections, the Congress-led UPA won 45 out of these 102 seats, with BJP-led NDA securing 41.

Alongside the Lok Sabha polls, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim are also witnessing Assembly elections. In Arunachal Pradesh, polling will be conducted in 50 out of 60 seats, with BJP uncontested in 10. A total of 133 candidates, including seven women, are in the fray, with BJP contesting 50 seats, Congress 19, NPP 20, and NCP 14.

In Sikkim, 147 candidates, including 12 women, are vying for the 32 Assembly seats. The ruling SKM, led by Prem Singh Tamang, is confident of retaining power, while the SDF, which ruled Tripura for over 24 years, faces voter apathy. With Congress nearly absent, BJP and Citizen Action Party emerge as potential contenders.

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