The second phase of the Lok Sabha election for eight constituencies in Maharashtra concluded peacefully on Friday without any major incident. The voter turnout averaged 53.71% until 6pm, according to data from the Election Commission.
In Nanded’s Ramtirth village, a youngster vandalised the EVM and VVPAT machine with an axe. The police later detained him.
The constituencies where polling took place include five in the Western Vidarbha area — Buldhana, Akola, Amravati, Wardha, and Yavatmal-Washim — and three in the drought-prone Marathwada region — Hingoli, Nanded and Parbhani. The State sends 48 MPs to the Lower House, the most after Uttar Pradesh’s 80.
According to data, Wardha recorded 56.66% turnout, Amravati 55.12%, Yavatmal-Washim 54.04%, Parbhani 53.79%, Nanded 53.53%, Buldhana 53.29%, Akola 52.49%, Hingoli 52.03%.
Over 1.49 crore voters, including 77,21,374 men, 72,04,106 women, and 432 persons from the third-gender category were eligible to exercise their franchise.
On April 19, the eastern Vidarbha region, including Nagpur, Ramtek, Chandrapur, Bhandara-Gondia, and Gadchiroli-Chimur, saw a voter turnout of 63.70% in the first phase.
B. R. Ambedkar’s grandson, Prakash Ambedkar, leading the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), contested from the Akola seat while his brother Anandraj Ambedkar contested from Amravati as a Republican Sena candidate. In Akola, Anup Dhotre of the BJP, , Abhay Patil of the Congress and Mr. Prakash were in the fray.
Amravati’s contest this time threw up an interesting contest with Navneet Kaur Rana fighting on a BJP ticket. Her candidature caused resentment among local BJP leaders and leaders of the Eknath Shinde Shiv Sena and Prahar Janshakti Party. It finally emerged as a three-cornered contest with the Congress fielding sitting MLA Balwant Wankhede and the Janshakti Party backing Dinesh Bub.
In Buldhana, the incumbent MP from Sena (Shinde), Prataprao Jadhav, was pitted against Narendra Khedekar from the Sena (UBT). In Yavatmal-Washim, the Sena (Shinde) has nominated Rajashri Patil, replacing Bhavana Gawli. Ms. Patil faced Sanjay Deshmukh of the Sena (UBT).
Nanded featured a contest between BJP MP Pratap Chikhalikar and Congress nominee Vasant Chavan.
In Parbhani, Rashtriya Samaj Paksha’s Mahadev Jankar, backed by the ruling Mahayuti alliance including BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde) and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, contested against Sena (UBT) nominee Sanjay Jadhav.
In Wardha, former Congress MLA Amar Kale, now with NCP, was up against BJP MP Ramdas Tadas.
