Voters across Assam, Kerala and the Union Territory of Puducherry on Thursday headed to the polling booths to decide the electoral fate of candidates contesting the Assembly elections. Polling for all 140 constituencies in Kerala, 126 in Assam and 30 in Puducherry is being held in a single phase.
Security measures have been tightened with Central paramilitary and state police forces deployed to ensure peaceful election.
The counting of votes will be held on May 4.
Assam
The state has an electorate of 2.50 crore, including 1.25 crore women and 318 from the third gender, and 31,490 polling stations. The number of candidates in the fray is 883.
The ruling BJP under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is aiming for a third consecutive term in office, while the Congress seeks to wrest power after being ousted in 2016.
Prominent candidates include Sarma, Congress state president Gaurav Gogoi, assembly Speaker Biswajit Daimary, Leader of the opposition Debabrata Saikia, AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi, and Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi. Several cabinet ministers, including the AGP's Atul Bora and Keshav Mahanta, and the BPF's Charan Boro are also in the fray.
The ruling NDA's main constituents are the BJP, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the Bodo Peoples' Front (BPF) while the opposition alliance comprises the Congress, Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), CPI(M), All Party Hill Leaders Conference (APHLC) and CPI(ML).
Kerala
Around 2.71 crore voters will decide the fate of the 883 candidates who are contesting from the 140 Assembly constituencies in the state. The electorate comprises 1.32 crore men, 1.39 crore women and 273 transgender persons, along with over 2.42 lakh overseas voters.
The Left Democratic Front under Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is eyeing a third term in the southern state. The Congress-led United Democratic Front is the main challenger. The BJP has emerged as a third player.
The election campaign, which lasted nearly a month, witnessed intense political exchanges and high-decibel rhetoric, with all three fronts engaging in sharp attacks and counter-attacks.
Puducherry
The Union Territory has a total of 9.50 lakh voters spread over Puducherry (23 Assembly segments) Karaikal (five), Mahe and Yanam (having one constituency each).
The NDA led by the AINRC and the INDIA bloc comprising Congress, DMK and the VCK are the two principal alliances in the race and the entry of actor-politician led Vijay's TVK has led to lot of expectations.
Actor-director Seeman's NTK is another party which is in the race, determined to make a mark.
ALSO READ: Kerala Opinion Polls: Elections Likely To Be A Thriller As LDF, UDF Remain Evenly Matched
(With PTI inputs)
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