Voting in 38 seats of the Jharkhand assembly elections took place in the second phase, in which the electorate voted very enthusiastically on November 20. It was a day where a sea of people reached in every polling station. Women, after completing their household chores, reached the polling stations much before time. One such female voter expressed her satisfaction, saying, “I am very happy to have cast my vote. Everyone has the right to vote in these elections, and I’ve done my part today.”
This phase of the election took place at 14,219 polling booths spread across 12 districts. With increased security concerns, especially around sensitive areas, 31 polling booths had curtailed voting hours, that is, it would close at 4 PM only. Voting went on until 5 PM elsewhere. In addition, the authorities had deployed a huge force to make the election incident-free and secure: 585 companies of the central paramilitary forces, 60 companies of JAP, and 30,000 district forces and home guards personnel.
Polling Integrity And Accountability
The voting process was pretty smooth, though there was a concern over election duty bias. Two polling officers were involved in wrongdoings in their respective poll duties. In Deoghar, the presiding officer got relieved as he was found near the voting compartment. Another officer in Madhupur had an FIR lodged against him and was taken into custody.
Final Phase And Voter Participation
The voting in this decisive phase saw as many as 528 candidates contest for the 38 seats. The fortunes of these candidates now lie in the hands of over 1.23 crore eligible voters, who will determine the political landscape in Jharkhand. It will be the result of these elections that will set the stage for which party or coalition will lead the next state government.
As of 5 PM, voter turnout in Jharkhand’s second and final phase of polling sees a higher turnout of 67.59%, according to the Election Commission.
With the election process reaching its closure, the focus shifts to a vote-counting process followed by announcing the new government of Jharkhand, as in itself the voice of voters holds a significant place in deciding the course of this state.
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