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Lok Sabha elections 2019| Noida, Ghaziabad get inked; BJP, alliance both claim edge
While Gautam Budh Nagar constituency saw a polling turnout of 60.15%, the Ghaziabad constituency saw a voter turnout of 57.6%.
The residents of the twin NCR cities of Uttar Pradesh—Noida and Ghaziabad— got inked on Thursday to elect their MPs in the first phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The constituencies of Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad were among the eight seats in western UP that went to polls on Thursday.
While Gautam Budh Nagar constituency saw a polling turnout of 60.15%, the Ghaziabad constituency saw a voter turnout of 57.6%. Two junior ministers in the Modi government — Dr Mahesh Sharma from Gautam Budh Nagar and General (retired) VK Singh from Ghaziabad — have a tough contest on their hands to retain their seats.
In Gautam Budh Nagar, it seems to be a straight fight between Dr Sharma and BSP-SP alliance candidate Satveer Nagar. The urban rural divide may hold the key to victory in this seat. With more urban electors turning up to vote this time, BJP stands a better chance of winning again, experts said. But with rural voters putting their might behind Nagar, he may get an upper hand, they feel.
Dr Sharma said, “This election is not to elect an MP or minister— it is to elect the prime minister. And people have voted to give the country the strongest PM.”
In the five assembly segments, Noida segment recorded a turnout of 53.6%, Dadri 64.6%, Jewar 68.4%, Sikandrabad 62.5% and Khurja 64%.
The final polling percentage will be updated by Friday.
Noida residents were seen celebrating the festival of the democracy with selfies and posting it on social media with #gotinked. There were the usual glitches, too — about EVMs not working and polling starting late. At least 50 EVMs were replaced during the day after they broke down.
Maruti Suzuki chairman RC Bhargava joined the list of people who found their names deleted from the voter list. A resident of Sector 15-A, Bhargava said he will seek clarification regarding the deletion from the authorities.
Noida, a city of veterans with a large population of retired military personnel, saw the elderly come out in large numbers on Thursday. V Santhanam, a 101-year-old resident of Sector 104, who first voted in 1946, and World War-2 veteran 96-year-old colonel (retired) Manmohan Bakshi, were some of the senior citizens who voted.
In Ghaziabad, going by the voting pattern, political experts say it seems to be a direct contest between Gen Singh and Samajwadi Party candidate Suresh Bansal, who also has the support of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD). The Congress has fielded Dolly Sharma as its candidate.
Ritu Maheshwari, the district election officer, said that the final figures would be out Friday.
“Overall, voting was peaceful in the district, barring minor issues with the polling equipment and electoral rolls,” she added.
Till 5pm Thursday, rural segments of Dhaulana (61.1%) and Muradnagar (53.42%) were among the top two segments while the Ghaziabad segment was the only one which secured less than 50% polling.
