 "Counting of votes begins for Rampur, Azamgarh Lok Sabha by-elections")
Counting of votes for the by-elections to the Rampur and Azamgarh Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh got underway at 8 am Sunday amid tight security, a senior official said.
The two constituencies voted on June 23, with Azamgarh recording a turnout of 49.43 per cent and Rampur 41.39 per cent.
The counting began at 8 am Sunday, a senior official at the Election Commission's office here said.
The bypolls were necessitated due to the resignations of Samajwadi Party (SP)chief Akhilesh Yadav and party leader Azam Khan from Azamgarh and Rampur seats, respectively.
Both leaders had quit as Lok Sabha MPs following their election to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly in the elections held earlier this year.
Over 35 lakh people were eligible to vote in the bypolls to decide the fate of 19 candidates.
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In Rampur, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had fielded Ghanshyam Singh Lodhi, who recently joined the party. Asim Raja, handpicked by Azam Khan, is the SP candidate. The Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is not contesting from Rampur.
The Azamgarh seat saw a triangular contest among the BJP's Dinesh Lal Yadav 'Nirhua', a Bhojpuri actor-singer, the SP's Dharmendra Yadav and the BSP's Shah Alam, also known as Guddu Jamali.