Assembly Elections LIVE: 77% voting in West Bengal; 71% in Tamil Nadu

West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu Election 2021 Live Updates: Voting in the 4 states and 1 UT is underway. Stay tuned for LIVE updates on Assembly elections 2021

Assembly election 2021: Voting in underway in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry. Polling will happen in a single phase in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. It is Assam's third and final, while West Bengal has five more. Voting for all constituencies began at 7 am and will finish at 6 pm. The results of all five elections will be declared on May 2. Over 20 crore people from Assam, Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry will vote in a mammoth electoral exercise today. 

As many as 31 seats will go to the polls in West Bengal today. All 234 seats in Tamil Nadu vote in a single phase today. In Assam, the final phase will see 40 seats in play, with the ruling BJP aiming for a second term. The 140 seats of Kerala also vote in a single phase today, with the LDF government led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan looking to retain power. Puducherry is currently under President's Rule. The Congress party will contest 14 of the 30 Assembly seats, with the DMK getting 13.

Stay tuned for LIVE updates on West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu Election 2021

3:17 AM

Puducherry records 81 per cent polling

An estimated 81.64 per cent of the 10.04 lakh voters exercised their franchise in Puducherry on Tuesday for the 30 Assembly seats in the union territory.

An official source said that Yanam registered the highest polling percentage of 91.27 per cent and Mahe region, the lowest at 73.53 per cent

Polling was by and large peaceful.

 

A health department release said 510 COVID-19 patients also cast their franchise with full protective gear in the last hour of the polling, from 6-7 pm.
 

Among key contestants trying their electoral fortunes are AINRC leader and former Chief Minister N Rangasamy, heading the National Democratic Alliance, with the other constituents being the BJP and the AIADMK.
 

He is seeking election from Thattanchady segment in Puducherry region as well as in Yanam, an enclave of the UT.
 

Former minister A Namassivayam is contesting on a BJP ticket from Manadipet, a new turf for him.
 

Former ministers M O H F Shah Jahan and R Kamalakannan are the other big names in the fray.
 

The election is a seen as a crucial battle for both the Congress led Secular Democratic Alliance and the NDA, as the former makes a bid to regain power, although its V Narayanasamy-led government fell in February after being reduced to a minority.
 

The NDA, under Rangasamy, is also keen to win a majority and form the government.
 

Counting of votes is slated for May 2.
 

3:16 AM

UDF seeks repoll in Taliparamba seat

The UDF on Tuesday sought repoll in the Taliparamba Assembly seat in Kerala's Kannur district, alleging that the CPI(M) workers captured many booths and engaged in bogus voting.
 

Congress state working president K Sudhakaran said the UDF would move court if repolling was not announced in the constituency.
 

Talking to reporters, Sudhakaran, who represents Kannur in the Lok Sabha, alleged that booths were captured in some parts of Anthoor municipality and five panchayats with the help of the poll officials.
 

UDF candidate V P Abdul Rasheed was prevented from visiting the booths seeking votes in the constituency, he alleged. CPI(M) leader M V Govindan is the LDF candidate in the seat.
 

Sudhakaran alleged widespread rigging of votes in Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's Dharmadam Assembly constituency.
 

Meanwhile, incidents of violence have been reported from some areas of the district.
 

3:16 AM

Stones 'pelted' at Shahnawaz Hussain in Howrah

BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain alleged that stones were pelted at him in Howrah on Tuesday night when he was campaigning for the West Bengal assembly election.
 

The BJP leader posted on social media a video in which he was seen showing two stones to the officer on duty and blaming the TMC for the alleged incident.
 

"TMC workers pelted stones on me while I was addressing a meeting at Muzzafar Chowk," Hussain tweeted, saying he was safe and the party workers had lodged a complaint.
 

"It's clear that TMC knew it is losing and hence is becoming desperate," Hussain said. "I myself went to the Golabari Police Station & asked them why police personnel were not deployed according to my Y + CRPF cover security protocol. Strangely, they had no answers for that." In his complaint, Umesh Rai, the BJP candidate from Howrah North, named few persons behind the attack, alleging they were all known TMC men in the area.
 

Police confirmed the lodging of the FIR and visit of Hussain to the station, adding that the alleged incident was being investigated.
 

The TMC denied any involvement of its workers and said the BJP was staging a "drama" to get attention as the roadshows and meetings of the saffron party were "failing" to draw crowds.
 

Earlier on Sunday, a roadshow attended by Hussain and Domjur assembly candidate Rajib Banerjee was stopped by police at Bankra area on the ground that there was no earlier permission.
 

Both Banerjee and Hussain had protested the action of police.
 

9:39 PM

Central forces assaulting people, asking them to vote for BJP: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday claimed that central forces "assaulted" voters in several constituencies where polling was underway, "instructing" them to vote for the BJP.
 

Banerjee also alleged that BJP forcibly occupied polling booths and attacked TMC candidates.
 

Addressing a public meeting here in Alipurduar district, the TMC boss accused the Election Commission of turning a blind eye to the "excesses" of the CRPF, CISF, BSF and the ITBP.
 

"They are beating and torturing people since morning.
 

They are saying 'BJP ko vote do' (vote for the BJP)," the chief minister said.
 

She said her party's nominee in Arambagh, Sujata Mondal, was chased and hit on head near a polling booth by saffron party workers.

"BJP supporters inflicted serious injury on our Scheduled Caste candidate Sujata, when she visited a booth.
 

They also hit another candidate in Khanakul.
 

"In Canning East, security forces prevented our nominee Shaukat Mollah from entering a booth. There have been numerous such instances of attack on our candidates and workers across the state," Banerjee said.
 

The CM also stated she has received at least 100 complaints of assault and violence since morning, and the EC has been duly informed but to no avail.

Alleging that a deep-rooted conspiracy has been hatched by the BJP leadership in Delhi after experiencing "poor turnout" in rallies, Banerjee said "security forces have been asked not to resist booth capturing".
 

"They have asked the CRPF to help BJP goons to capture booths. The BJP is running elections through guns. Even Donald Trump has not gone to the extent of Narendra Modi," she said.
 

9:38 PM

Impressive turnout in high-stakes assembly elections; Clashes reported in several areas

A high voter turnout was recorded in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry assembly elections on Tuesday, with the Congress along with its allies like the DMK locked in a keen contest to regain turf in South India.
 

In Kerala, where the Left is hoping to beat anti-incumbency to retain power, a feat unseen in four decades, while the BJP is making efforts to build inroads, nearly 74 percent polling was recorded till 7 PM. There was 63.47 percent voting in Tamil Nadu for 234 assembly constituencies and 77.90 percent in Puducherry till 5 PM.
 

The three-phase assembly election culminated in Assam with nearly 79 percent polling in the final round in the state where the ruling BJP is battling the Congress-led alliance to retain power, while the trend of high turnout and violence during polling continued in West Bengal as the ruling Trinamool Congress, the BJP and the Left-Congress alliance put up an intense fight in the high-stakes contest.
 

Five candidates, including two women, were assaulted in poll-related clashes as over 77 percent voting was recorded in 31 seats in West Bengal till 5 PM in the third phase.
 

Violence was reported in areas like Uluberia, Khanakul, Falta, Canning Purba, Durbrajpur and Hooghly, where a BJP supporter's family member was killed.

The state is having eight-phase elections.
 

Stray incidents of clashes between workers of rival parties were also reported in other states.
 

The massive polling exercise following Covid-19 health protocol and involving lakhs of personnel began at 7 AM and the last hour from 6 PM to 7 PM was set aside for Covid-19 patients and those under isolation.
 

8:49 PM

Glimpse of Enthusiastic Voters at the Polling queue of Howrah District

8:05 PM

Polling for Kerala Assembly Elections 2021 concluded at 7 pm

8:03 PM

Voting peaceful at Bhogdanga, polling station outside Indo-Bangla border fencing

With the hope that the new government of Assam will address their problems, Haleswar Ray on Tuesday voted for the party of his choice at the sole polling station set up outside the Indo-Bangladesh border fencing in the state's Dhubri district.

 

Ray is one of the 386 voters of the polling station at Bhogdanga, a tiny hamlet in the Gauripur assembly constituency in the district, and voting was held peacefully in the third and final phase of the elections.

 

Dhubri district, which shares 153 kms of the total 267.5 kms of Assam's border with Bangladesh, has 63 polling stations along the international boundary with 26 in Dhubri, 18 in Gauripur and 19 in Golokgunj constituencies, an official said.

7:34 PM

BJP demands independent inquiry from EC after EVMs found in TMC candidate's house

The BJP on Tuesday demanded an independent inquiry from the Election Commission after electronic voting machines (EVMs) and VVPAT machines were found in a TMC leader's house in a constituency in West Bengal's Howrah district.
 

Four EVMs and a similar number of VVPAT machines were found at the house of the Trinamool Congress leader in Uluberia constituency following which an election official was suspended by the poll body.
 

Addressing a press conference, senior BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar said it is a serious matter that a day before the polling EVMs and VVPAT machines were found in the TMC leader's house and were confiscated.

7:20 PM

LIVE: Voter turnout in Assembly Elections 2021 till 7:10 pm

Voter turnout in Assembly Elections 2021 till 7:10 pm: Assam 82.29%, Kerala 70.04%, Puducherry 78.13%, Tamil Nadu 65.11% and West Bengal 77.68%

7:18 PM

Polling conducted peacefully in all four states and one UT, says EC

Polling in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and for Phase 3 Assembly Constituencies in Assam and West Bengal conducted peacefully, says election commission of India

7:16 PM

Attacks on TMC and BJP candidates, 5 arrested

Police arrested five persons -- three members of the TMC and two of the BJP -- for their alleged involvement in assaulting TMC's Sujata Mondal, candidate from Arasmbagh, earlier on Tuesday, a police officer said.

 

Police also said they had launched a search for those who assaulted Papiya Adhikary, BJP candidate from Uluberia (Dakshin) assembly seat, when she visited Uluberia hospital to call on an injured party candidate.

 

The attacks were part of a series of clashes which were reported from several parts of Bengal, where polling is underway in the third phase of assembly elections.

7:05 PM

LIVE: Polling ends for the third and the final phase of Assam Assembly Election 2021

LIVE: Polling ends for the third and the final phase of Assam Assembly Election 2021

6:37 PM

DMK MP Kanimozhi cast her vote wearing PPE kit in Mylapore constituency

5:58 PM

LIVE: Voter turnout till 5:30 pm in all the four states and one UT

Voter turnout in Assembly Elections till 5:30 pm: Assam 78.94%, Kerala 69.95%, Puducherry 77.90%, Tamil Nadu 63.47% and West Bengal 77.68%