Anil Ambani, Akshay Kumar, Farhan Akhtar cast their vote for 2024 Lok Sabha elections

MUMBAI: Industrialist Anil Ambani cast his vote for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections today in Mumbai. Actor Akshay Kumar was also among the first at his designated polling booth to cast his vote. Actor Farhan Akhtar and sister Zoya Akhtar also arrive to cast their votes at Mount Mary Convent High School in Bandra.

Voting for the fifth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections 2024 began on Monday morning across 49 parliamentary constituencies spread over six states and two Union Territories (UTs) amid tight security and arrangements. The voting started at 7 am and will continue until 6 pm, with those in line by the closing time still allowed to vote. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), polling for 35 assembly constituencies of the Odisha legislative assembly will also take place simultaneously on Monday.

As per the ECI, over 8.95 crore voters, including 4.69 crore males, 4.26 crore females, and 5409 third-gender electors, will decide the fate of 695 candidates in the fifth phase of voting. The fifth phase will witness key contests in various constituencies. Leaders such as Rahul Gandhi, BJP leaders Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Piyush Goyal, Ujjwal Nikam, Karan Bhushan Singh, LJP (Ramvilas) chief Chirag Paswan, JKNC chief Omar Abdullah, and RJD leader Rohini Acharya are looking for electoral success. Eight states/UTs going for polls in phase 5 are: Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.Cities like Mumbai, Thane, and Lucknow are going to the polls in this phase, which has in the past suffered from urban apathy in voting.

The commission especially calls upon these city dwellers to erase the stigma by turning out in higher numbers.Of the 49 Lok Sabha seats, 14 are from Uttar Pradesh, 13 from Maharashtra, 7 from West Bengal, 5 from Bihar, 3 from Jharkhand, 5 from Odisha, and one each from Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. In a bid to create a peaceful atmosphere for the electors, a total of 2,000 flying squads, 2105 static surveillance teams, 881 video surveillance teams, and 502 video viewing teams are keeping surveillance round the clock across the 94,732 polling stations. A total of 216 international border check posts and 565 inter-state border check posts are keeping a strict vigil on any illicit flow of liquor, drugs, cash, and freebies. Strict surveillance has been kept on sea and air routes, the ECI said.

The ECI said that the polling stations are ready to welcome the voters with ample shade, drinking water, ramps, toilets, and other basic facilities to ensure that polling takes place in a comfortable and secure environment. The concerned CEOs, DEOs, and state machinery have been advised to take adequate measures to manage hot weather conditions in areas where it is forecast, it added.The Commission has called upon voters to turn out in greater numbers at polling stations and vote with responsibility and pride.

Until now, the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 have seen a voter turnout at polling stations of about 66.95 per cent.Around 451 million people have already voted during the first four phases of the ongoing general elections, the ECI added. ECI has partnered with a host of prominent figures to appeal to and motivate voters to cast their vote during the ongoing elections.

The remaining phases of the polls will continue until June 1, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4. Polling for 23 states (UTs) and 379 PCs was completed in a smooth and peaceful manner in the first four phases of the general elections.With the conclusion of four phases, polling for general elections has crossed the halfway mark, with polling completed in 23 states/UTs and 379 parliamentary constituencies.

Polling is also completed in general elections for the state legislative assemblies of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Andhra Pradesh and the 28 assembly seats of the Odisha State Assembly. The results of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections will be announced on June 4.