Polling in Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituency (reserved) saw brisk and peaceful voting on Friday, barring an incident of poll boycott and ransacking of a polling booth in Hanur taluk.
The fate of candidates has been sealed in the electronic voting machines (EVMs) with the 11-hour-long polling drawing to a close at 6 p.m. At 5 p.m., the voting percentage was 69.60.
As many as 2,000 polling booths had been set up for the 17,78,310 eligible voters.
The constituency-wise voting percentage at 5 p.m. was H.D. Kote 69.20; Nanjangud 62.84; Varuna 71.01; T. Narsipur 69.06; Hanur 68.04; Kollegal 68.07; Chamarajanagar 71.97, and Gundlupet 76.76.
Polling was brisk after it started at 7 a.m., with voters standing in queues to cast their ballot. Heatwave conditions were one of the prime reasons for the morning session of polling seeing a good turnout.
The Chamarajanagar constituency comprises Varuna, T.Narsipur, H.D. Kote, and Nanjangud Assembly constituencies in Mysuru district and Gundlupet, Hanur, Kollegal, and Chamarajanagar assembly constituencies in Chamarajanagar district.
Among the prominent personalities who cast their votes included Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his son Yathindra at Siddaramanahundi, near Mysuru.
Congress candidate Sunil Bose, BJP candidate S. Balaraj are the key candidates here.
Minister in charge of Mysuru district H.C. Mahadevappa and his son, Mr. Bose, cast their votes in T. Narsipur.
Deputy Commissioner Shilpa Nag cast her vote at PWD School in Chamarajanagar town. She, Assistant Returning Officer Savita and ZP Deputy Secretary Lakshmi had worn specially-woven silk saris that had voter awareness messages.
The theme-based polling booth at Ramasamudra, which wore a festive atmosphere, saw voters lining up the corridors at the government school waiting for their turns to cast their ballots. This was one of the special booths that spread the message of the importance of voting.
Registering 7 per cent polling in a span of two hours from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., polling picked up pace in almost all Assembly constituencies and touched 22.81 per cent by 11 a.m.
The voting percentage was 39.57 by 1 p.m. and 54.82 percent by 3 p.m. By 5 p.m., the turnout was 69.60 per cent.
Actor Nagabhushan, who is also SVEEP ambassador for Chamarajnagar, cast his ballot at Tagarapura in Kollegal taluk. He took a picture of him standing in the selfie booth, displaying his inked finger.
Booth number 221 in Kotthalawadi village was exceptional as it was a differently-abled friendly booth. It had a ramp, wheelchair, magnifying glass, volunteers for assistance, toilets for specially-abled, and transportation arrangement. Also, outside the booth, there was a display of aids useful for the differently-abled and learning tools for the visually impaired. There was a festive ambience all around and the voters appreciated the efforts of the district administration.
Maaramma, a centenarian, cast her vote at Kunthur village. After voting, she came out and advised the people not to miss voting as she had voted at her age walking to the booth with an assistant.
The elections saw many first-time voters casting their ballots and sporting their inked left index fingers for photographs proudly stating that they have voted for democracy.
As many as 983 polling booths had been set up in the four Assembly constituencies falling in Chamarajanagar district — Hanur, Kollegal, Chamarajanagar, and Gundlupet — while the remaining 1,017 polling booths had been set up in the four Assembly segments coming in Mysuru district — H.D. Kote, Nanjangud, Varuna, and T. Narsipur.
A total of 263 polling booths were in urban areas and the remaining 1,737 in rural areas. Among the 17,78,310 eligible voters in the constituency, 8,78,702 are men, 8,99,501 women, and 107 belong to the transgender category.
