UP: 100 candidates in fray for third phase of Lok Sabha polls, voting on 10 constituencies tomorrow

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 6 : As the stage is set for the third phase of the Lok Sabha General Elections 2024 on May 7, Uttar Pradesh's Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa has appealed to voters urging them to participate in large numbers. A total of 10 seats in Uttar Pradesh are going to polls in the third phase.
The constituencies scheduled for elections in this phase include Sambhal, Hathras, Agra, Fatehpur Sikri, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah, Badaun, Aonla, and Bareilly, spanning across 12 districts of the state. With all necessary arrangements in place, the electoral machinery is geared towards ensuring a transparent and impartial voting process. Eligible voters can vote until 6:00 PM at their respective polling stations.
UP Chief Electoral Officer informed that there are 1,89,14,788 eligible voters, comprising 1,01,44,345 males, 87,69,696 females, and 747 third-gender voters. Agra boasts the highest number of voters at 20,72,685, while Etah has the lowest with 17,524 registered voters in their respective Lok Sabha constituencies.
"Arrangements have been made for live webcasting at 50 per cent polling places (10208 polling places), which will be supervised at all three levels by the District Election Officer, Chief Electoral Officer, and Election Commission of India. Apart from this, there will also be arrangements for videography at 3,503 polling places. In the third phase, a total of 370 model polling places, 79 all-women managed polling places, 39 all youth worker polling places, and 47 all disabled managed polling places have been created," he said.
In this phase, 100 candidates, including eight women, are vying for seats across the 10 Lok Sabha constituencies. Bareilly tops the list with 13 candidates, whereas Firozabad has the fewest contenders with 7. The electoral landscape comprises 20,415 polling booths and 12,339 polling stations for the convenience of voters. Notably, 4,390 polling places have been identified as critical for close monitoring during the election process.
To keep a vigilant eye on the voting, the Commission has also deployed 3 special observers, 10 general observers, 6 police observers, and 14 expenditure observers. Apart from this, 1887 Sector Magistrates, 241 Zonal Magistrates, 668 Static Magistrates, and 2859 Micro Observers have also been deployed.
4783 heavy vehicles, 5462 light vehicles, and 88420 polling personnel have been deployed to conduct the election process. 25819 EVM control units, 25819 ballot units, and 27597 VVPATs have been prepared for voting in the elections.
An adequate strength of paramilitary forces has been deployed to conduct the elections peacefully. The responsibility of security of the strong room has also been entrusted to paramilitary forces. In addition to paramilitary forces/police forces, arrangements have also been made for air ambulances and helicopters for medical assistance in case of emergency. The location of the helicopter will be in Agra on 6th and 7th May and the location of the air ambulance will be in Bareilly on 7th May.
In the third phase, liquor, cash drugs, etc. worth Rs 22.65 crore have been seized from March 16, 2024, to May 6, 2024.
Voting on 16 seats has already concluded in two phases.
Exuding confidence on the outcome of Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav on Monday said that people of Uttar Pradesh will show the exit door to the Bharatiya Janata Party from the state adding that BJP will not even find a space to put their foot in the third phase of elections.
"The whole nation has never been with the BJP. But due to a split in votes, they get into power. They are not winning anything in the South. Uttar Pradesh will show the exit door to the BJP. They are badly defeated in the first two phases. In the third phase, BJP will not even find a space to put their foot in," Ram Gopal Yadav told ANI.
Ram Gopal Yadav further said that Prime Minister Modi and the BJP have to be removed from power to save the country.
"Opposition and INDIA alliance are also saying that if the country needs to be saved, PM Modi should be removed (from power), the Country is drowned in poverty, and businessmen are in a bad situation. We're in a situation where people are scared to say something because they fear that a case of treason will be filed against them," he said.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav will be seeking re-election from Mainpuri, a seat represented by her father-in-law and party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav which was vacated after his death on October 10. Dimple Yadav of the Samajwadi Party won the Mainpuri parliamentary by-election in December 2022, defeating Raghuraj Singh Shakya of the BJP by a margin of 2,88,461 votes.
Ahead of the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024, slated for May 7, there is confidence in the BJP camp in Uttar Pradesh to once again gain an edge over the opposition, as in the previous two phases. Elections will be held on ten seats in Uttar Pradesh in the third phase. Notably, all candidates on these 10 seats (Sambhal, Bareilly, Budaun, Etah, Aonla, Fatehpur Sikri, Hathras, Firozabad, Mainpuri, and Agra) are from the BJP. During these rallies and public meetings, CM Yogi has urged beneficiaries of both central and state government schemes in the state to participate actively in the voting process.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said that Congress and Samajwadi Party have a history of opposing Lord Ram adding that people should not trust them over their poll promises. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath urged the people that those who support terrorists and disrespect Ram should not receive any votes.
Addressing an election rally in Unnao, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, "Congress and SP have a history of opposing Lord Ram. Congress denied the existence of Lord Ram, while SP claimed that 'Ayodhya mein ek parinda bhi par nahi maar sakta' (not even a bird could fly in Ayodhya). This dual stance reflects their hypocrisy. In such circumstances, one should never place trust in them."