India created world record with 64.2 cr people voting in LS polls: CEC Rajiv Kumar

NEW DELHI: India created a world record with 64.2 crore voters, including 31.2 crore women, participating in the Lok Sabha elections this year, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Monday.

Addressing a press briefing, he said over 68,000 monitoring teams and 1.5 crore polling and security personnel were involved in the world's largest electoral exercise.

"India created a world record with 64.2 crore voters, including 31.2 crore women, participating in the Lok Sabha elections this year," said Kumar.

On social media memes calling election commissioners 'Laapataa Gentlemen', Kumar said, "We were always here, never went missing."

"Now memes can say the 'Laapataa Gentlemen' are back," he said.

Kumar said that nearly four lakh vehicles, 135 special trains and 1,692 air sorties were used for conducting the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

"Only 39 repolls took place in the 2024 general elections as against 540 repolls in 2019," he said.

The CEC further said that Jammu and Kashmir recorded its highest turnout in four decades at 58.58 per cent overall and 51.05 per cent in the Valley.

"Seizures of Rs 10,000 crore, including cash, freebies, drugs and liquor, were made during the 2024 polls as compared to Rs 3,500 crore in 2019," he said.