Lok Sabha Election 2019: Stage set for showdown as 1st phase of voting to start on April 11
The stage is set for 1st Phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha election on April 11 with voting in 91 seats across 20 states.
The stage is set for 1st Phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha election on April 11 with voting in 91 seats across 20 states.
States which will be voting - fully or partially - include Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Telangana.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday appealed to the people to vote in large numbers to strengthen democracy. The first phase of the Lok Sabha polls will be held on Thursday.
"Tomorrow is first of the seven-phase elections for the 17th Lok Sabha. Approximately 90 crore voters will exercise their franchise. We appeal to the people of India to vote fearlessly so that foundations of our democracy get stronger," Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora said while talking to ANI here.
Arora further said that the ECI has been preparing for this "grand-festival" for the last few months.
"We are certain that this grand festival will only succeed if the voting percentage is big. We have made efforts so that women, soldiers, disabled can vote comfortably," Arora said.
Terming the voters as the foundation stones of any democracy, the Chief Election Commissioner said: "Democratic world holds great faith in Indian election process. I once again request all of you to vote and strengthen the democracy in India."
The Lok Sabha polls are scheduled to be conducted in seven phases from April 11 to May 19. The results will be announced on May 23
Candidates fielded for the first phase of Lok Sabha election, to be held on Thursday, have serious criminal charges registered against them, according to an analysis by ADR India, an advocacy group.The two national parties have fielded 83 candidates each for the first phase of the election.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has fielded eight candidates in the first phase, of which three, which comes to around nearly 38 per cent, have serious criminal charges registered against them, said a statement by Association of Democratic Reforms.
The candidates have made self declaration about their pending serious criminal charges.
Six candidates of the Nationalist Congress Party are in the fray, of which two, nearly 33 per cent, have serious criminal charges registered against them.
Of the five candidates fielded by Trinamool Congress, none face criminal charges.
The Bahujan Samaj Party has fielded 32 candidates in the first phase of the election. Nineteen per cent face serious criminal charges.
The Communist Party of India has fielded eight candidates, of which only one has serious criminal charge registered.
Ninety-one Lok Sabha seats across 20 states and Union Territories will go to polls on Thursday.