UP: Preparations complete for free and fair elections in 13 LS seats, Duddhi Assembly by-poll

Sonbhadra (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 31 : The stage has been set for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections for 13 seats of Uttar Pradesh and Duddhi assembly by-polls on Saturday.
Before voting in the seventh phase, Navdeep Rinwa, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Uttar Pradesh, appealed to voters to cast their votes in large numbers.
"All preparations have been completed for free and fair elections. Voting in the 12 Lok Sabha constituencies will begin at 7.00 AM and continue until 6.00 PM," said UP CEO.
"3 out of the 5 Vidhansabha constituencies of the Robertsganj Lok Sabha constituency, voting will take place from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM, while in the remaining 2 constituencies, Robertsganj Vidhan Sabha constituency and the Duddhi Lok Sabha General constituency and by-election constituency, voting will take place from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM," he said.
He further stated that in the seventh phase, voting will take place in the Lok Sabha constituencies of Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria, Bansgaon, Ghosi, Salempur, Ballia, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Varanasi, Mirzapur, and Robertsganj, along with the Duddhi Assembly by-election constituency.
The Duddhi Assembly by-election constituency is located in Sonbhadra district.
Voters present at the polling stations at the end of the voting period will be able to exercise their right to vote.
UP Chief Electoral Officer Rinwa said that in the seventh phase, there are a total of 25,05,68,877 voters, including 13,31,08,897 male, 11,74,49,922 female, and 1,058 third-gender voters.
In terms of the number of voters in the seventh phase, Gorakhpur has the highest with 20,972,202 voters, while Salempur Lok Sabha constituency has the lowest with 17,769,982 voters.
There are a total of 144 candidates in the field across 13 Lok Sabha constituencies, including 134 male and 10 female candidates.
In the seventh phase, the Ghosi Lok Sabha constituency has the highest number of 28 candidates, while Deoria and Varanasi Lok Sabha constituencies have the lowest with 7 candidates.
To ensure vigilant oversight during the voting process, the Election Commission has deployed 3 special observers, 13 general observers, 8 police observers, and 14 expenditure observers.
Additionally, 1,861 sector magistrates, 243 zonal magistrates, 130 static magistrates, and 2,550 micro observers have been appointed.
To facilitate the electoral process, 7,258 heavy vehicles, 5,346 light vehicles, and 108,349 polling personnel have been deployed. Adequate numbers of paramilitary forces have been stationed to conduct the elections peacefully.
Paramilitary forces are also responsible for securing the strong rooms. Medical assistance, air ambulances, and helicopters have been arranged for emergencies related to the management of paramilitary and police forces.
The helicopters will be stationed in Gorakhpur on May 31 and June 1, while air ambulances will be stationed in Varanasi on June 1.
The Election Commission of India has distributed voter information slips to the voters through the District Election Officer, through which they will be able to know their current polling station and serial number.
A total of 24,77,95,548 voters have been provided with voter slips in the seventh phase. Additionally, voters can also obtain information about their polling stations through the Voter Helpline app and the website of the Election Commission of India.
Voter guides have also been distributed for the convenience of voters. In the districts of the seventh phase, voter guides have been distributed to 49,49,347 families.
From October 27, 2023, to May 31, 2024, a total of 13,30,994 voter photo identity cards have been distributed in the districts of the seventh phase. During the polling period, all BLOs will be present at the Voter Assistance Booths with the alphabetic locator voter list to assist incoming voters.
Provision has been made for wheelchairs at polling centres for Divyang voters, along with volunteers available at various locations to assist them.
Any complaints related to voting can be registered by calling the toll-free number 1800-180-1950 at the state level and 1950 at the district level.
Any complaints related to voting can be registered by calling the toll-free number 1800-180-1950 at the state level and 1950 at the district level. Additionally, complaints can also be lodged on the C-Vigil app, NGSVP/VHACP.
In the seventh phase, from March 16, 2024, to May 31, 2024, a total of 1,145 complaints were registered on C-Vigil. Among them, 842 complaints were found to be valid while 303 complaints were found to be invalid.
In the seventh phase, from March 16, 2024, to May 31, 2024, liquor, cash, and drugs worth Rs 37.46 crore were seized.
At the same time, there are a total of 344840 voters in the assembly by-election constituency Duddhi, out of which 1 lakh 81 thousand 250 are men, 1 lakh 63 thousand 581 are women and 9 third gender voters.
There are 361 polling stations, of which 80 are critical and 216 are polling stations. A total of 6 candidates are in the fray.