3rd phase of Lok Sabha polls to be held tomorrow

Campaigning for the third phase of Lok Sabha elections ended this evening. 116 constituencies, spread over 13 States and two Union Territories, will go to polls in this phase on Tuesday.

In Gujarat, all 26 Lok Sabha seats will go to poll in this phase  The last day of campaigning saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing a rally in Patan in the northern part of the state and BJP President Amit Shah holding a roadshow in Gandhinagar. During campaigning, the two key parties in the state- the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress are exuding confidence of a good showing. Campaigning for four Assembly bypolls in Dhrangadhra, Manavadar, Unjha and Jamnagar (Rural) seats also ended.

In Uttar Pradesh, leaders of all political parties made last ditch effort to woo the voters in favour of their party candidates. In Odisha, six Lok Sabha seats and 42 assembly constituencies will go to polls in this phase. Leaders of political parties like the BJP and the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) undertook whirlwind tours of the constituencies, mostly situated in coastal and central Odisha. As several areas going to the polls have been identified as critical, tight security arrangements have been made to ensure peaceful polling. DGP B K Sharma has reviewed the preparedness for the third phase polls and directed officials to take all necessary steps to ensure a free and fair election. 

In Chhattisgarh, the third phase of polling on Tuesday will mark the completion of Lok Sabha elections in the state.  State chief electoral officer Subrat Sahoo said, 123 candidates are in the fray in seven Lok Sabha seats going to polls in this phase. These are - Raipur, Durg, Bilaspur, Korba, Janjgir-Champa, Surguja and Raigarh.

In Karnataka, 14 constituencies of North Karnataka region will go to polls. Over two crore 43 lakh voters are eligible to cast their vote in this phase.

In Kerala, a record 227 candidates will contest 20 on Lok Sabha seats in the state in the third phase on Tuesday. Among the constituencies, Wayanad gains special focus as Congress President Rahul Gandhi is contesting from this seat. AIR correspondent reports that Thiruvananthapuram will witness a tough battle with sitting Congress MP Shashi Tharoor eyeing a hat-trick of wins. Mr .Tharoor is contesting against former Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan of the BJP and LDF candidate C. Divakaran. Pathanamthitta is another constituency that will be keenly watched, as it's here that the Sabarimala temple is located. The Thrissur and Chalakudy seats too will be followed keenly because of the 'star value' associated with the candidates in fray. In Thrissur, the BJP has  fielded ts Rajya Sabha MP and actor Suresh Gopi and in Chalakudy, actor comedian Mr  Innocent, the sitting Independent MP backed by the LDF is contesting. 

Meanwhile, the climax of election campaign witnessed scuffles in some parts of the state  between political activists today evening. Clashes were reported from Thiruvananthapuram Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam Ponnani ,and Vadakara in



Kozhikode . District collector of Kozhikode has enforced prohibitory orders in Vadakara constituency on polling day to ensure peaceful polling. The police and central armed forces had posted a large number of personnel to keep the situation under control. Chief electoral officer 

Teeka Ram Meena  reviewed the security arrangements and said there will be special focus on polling stations in north Kerala regions that face threat from left wing extremists. 

In  Assam, 74 lakh voters will decide the political fate of the 54 candidates in this phase. Guwahati, Barpeta, Dhubri and Kokrajhar parliamentary constituencies will be covered in this phase. Polling personnel at a few places in far flung Nalbari and Kamrup have already started their journey to the polling stations. Boats, elephants, motor cycle are being pressed into service to carry man and materials.

In Maharashtra, fate of as many as 249 candidates will be decided during voting on 14 Lok Sabha seats in the third phase on Tuesday. AIR correspondent reports that, while the BJP and its ally Shiv Sena would like to atleast retain their 9 seats, if not more out of 14 seats going to polls that day; Congress and its ally NCP are surely hoping to gain grounds this time. The day will see a few high profile seats going to polls on that day. The Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, considered to be a bastion of the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party will go to polls in this phase. Party candidate Supriya Sule is contesting from this seat and is seeking a re-election. The Raigad seat too where Shiv Sena’s Anant Geete and NCP’s Sunil Tatkare are pitted against each other may witness a nail biting finish. Similarly, for Raver seat Senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse’s daughter-in-law Raksha Khadse’s fate will also be locked in ballot box on the same day. State BJP President Raosaheb Danve will also seek re-election for the fifth time from Jalna seat. 

Meanwhile, the state has arranged for elaborate security arrangements for the third phase of polling. Senior police official said adequate forces have been deployed in all the polling centres. The official said state borders have been sealed to prevent transportation of any illegal or prohibitive items like liquor or weapons. Also intense checking of private and public vehicles are also been conducted.

In Goa, polling for two Lok Sabha constituencies and by-polls to three Assembly seats will be held in the third phase. Polling will be held in a single phase for North Goa and South Goa Lok Sabha constituencies and Shiroda, Mapusa and Mandrem Assembly seats. 12 candidates are in the fray for the two Lok Sabha constituencies while there are 18 nominees for the three Assembly seats.

Election to Tripura East Lok Sabha constituency will be held in this phase. Fate of 10 contestants, including sitting MP Jitendra Choudhury of CPI(M) Congress candidate Pragya Debburman, BJP's Rebati Tripura and IPFT's N. C. Debbarma will be decided in this phase.