Around 77 per cent of the 1.76 crore electorate exercised their franchise in Punjab on Monday to elect the 117-member State Assembly. The figure was 76 per cent in the last Assembly elections.
Polling began on a dull note due to the morning chill in the state, but picked as the day progressed. Overall, polling in the state was peaceful barring few minor incidents. According to election commission, nine FIRs have been registered in different districts of the state for minor clashes.
The election commission had declared 2,718 polling stations as hyper sensitive, while 6,379 had been declared as sensitive polling stations. The state had 19,841 polling stations across its 22 districts.
The fate of 1,078 candidates, including two chief ministerial aspirants Parkash Singh Badal and Amarinder Singh, have thus been sealed.
Prominent candidates whose fate would be sealed on Monday include the Chief Minister from his traditional Lambi Assembly seat, his predecessor Amarinder Singh from Patiala city, their sons Sukhbir Singh Badal (Jalalabad) and Raninder Singh (Samana), former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal (Lehra), former Punjab top cop P S Gill (Moga), former Principal Secretary to the chief minister D S Guru (Bhadaur) and former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur
Meanwhile, before polling day unaccounted cash worth Rs. 33,66,00,000 has been referred to the IT Department. Besides that Poppy husk-2641 Kg., Illicit liquor-31947 litre.,country wine bottles-697106, opium- 99 kg., heroine-23.05 kg, smack-3.793, Lahan-227588 kg. have also been seized so far across the state. She said that 213352 licensed arms have been got deposited and 71 unlicensed arms have been seized. As many as 6784 persons bound down under sections107 /116.