Editor's Pick | 'Urban apathy' drives down polling to 60.4%

The fifth phase of the Lok Sabha election on Monday saw a 60.48% voter turnout till 11.50 p.m., amid reports of minor incidents of violence from West Bengal. Maharashtra recorded the lowest turnout at 54.33%, while West Bengal saw the highest at 76.05%. The voting percentage in Bihar was 54.85, Jharkhand 63.09, Odisha 69.34, Uttar Pradesh 57.79 and Ladakh 69.62. The Election Commission (EC) said in a statement that “parliamentary constituencies in various cities such as Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and Lucknow continued the trend of urban apathy as noticed in 2019.” Alleging mismanagement by the EC, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said the poll body was attempting to sabotage the election and benefit the BJP by less voting. With this phase, polling has ended in all 48 seats of Maharashtra. Polling in West Bengal, which saw the highest turnout, was marred by scattered incidents of violence. Workers of the Trinamool Congress and the BJP clashed in various parts of Barrackpore, Bongaon, and Arambagh. Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh saw a turnout of 57.85%, while neighbouring Amethi saw 54.15% turning out to vote. Voters of Hisampur Madho village in Kaushambi boycotted the polls. Voting took place for five Lok Sabha seats and 35 Assembly seats in Odisha. Some unidentified persons allegedly hacked an autorickshaw driver to death near Sarsara in Bargarh district of the State. The deceased was carrying some voters to a polling booth. While the family members claimed it was a political murder, police say personal enmity was the reason behind the crime. Of the 49 Lok Sabha seats which went to the polls on Monday, the BJP had won 32 while the Congress won only Rae Bareli in 2019. This time, the BJP is contesting in 40 seats, while the Congress has limited itself to just 18 seats, leaving the rest to its allies. This phase has 695 candidates, including 82 women, in the fray. With the fifth phase, the polling process in 25 States and Union Territories will be over. The next two phases will be on May 25 and June 1, while the counting of votes will be on June 4. The Hindu’s Editorial A closer contest: On the fifth phase of the general election, 2024 Death of a President: On Iran’s Ebrahim Raisi The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who was the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission during the time of India’s first nuclear test in 1974? Vikram Sarabhai Homi Bhabha Abdul Kalam HN Sethna To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here [logo] Editor's Pick 21 May 2024 [The Hindu logo] [EP Logo] Editor's Pick 21 May 2024 In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( ‘Urban apathy’ drives down polling to 60.4% The fifth phase of the [Lok Sabha election]( on Monday saw a 60.48% voter turnout till 11.50 p.m., amid reports of minor incidents of violence from West Bengal. Maharashtra recorded the lowest turnout at 54.33%, while West Bengal saw the highest at 76.05%. The voting percentage in Bihar was 54.85, Jharkhand 63.09, Odisha 69.34, Uttar Pradesh 57.79 and Ladakh 69.62. The Election Commission (EC) said in a statement that “parliamentary constituencies in various cities such as Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and Lucknow continued the trend of urban apathy as noticed in 2019.” Alleging mismanagement by the EC, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said the poll body was attempting to sabotage the election and benefit the BJP by less voting. With this phase, [polling has ended in all 48 seats of Maharashtra.]( Polling in West Bengal, which saw the highest turnout, was marred by scattered incidents of violence. Workers of the Trinamool Congress and the BJP clashed in various parts of Barrackpore, Bongaon, and Arambagh. Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh saw a turnout of 57.85%, while neighbouring Amethi saw 54.15% turning out to vote. Voters of Hisampur Madho village in Kaushambi boycotted the polls. Voting took place for five Lok Sabha seats and 35 Assembly seats in Odisha. Some unidentified persons allegedly hacked an autorickshaw driver to death near Sarsara in Bargarh district of the State. The deceased was carrying some voters to a polling booth. While the family members claimed it was a political murder, police say personal enmity was the reason behind the crime. Of the 49 Lok Sabha seats which went to the polls on Monday, the BJP had won 32 while the Congress won only Rae Bareli in 2019. This time, the BJP is contesting in 40 seats, while the Congress has limited itself to just 18 seats, leaving the rest to its allies. This phase has 695 candidates, including 82 women, in the fray. With the fifth phase, [the polling process]( in 25 States and Union Territories will be over. The next two phases will be on May 25 and June 1, while the counting of votes will be on June 4. The Hindu’s Editorial [Arrow][A closer contest: On the fifth phase of the general election, 2024]( [Arrow][Death of a President: On Iran’s Ebrahim Raisi]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who was the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission during the time of India’s first nuclear test in 1974? - Vikram Sarabhai - Homi Bhabha - Abdul Kalam - HN Sethna To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click[here]( [Sign up for free]( Today’s Best Reads [[Another crash, another high-profile passenger] Another crash, another high-profile passenger]( [[Compliments to people of Baramulla for unbreakable commitment to democratic values: PM Modi] Compliments to people of Baramulla for unbreakable commitment to democratic values: PM Modi]( [[Rajiv Gandhi | May 21 marks 33rd death anniversary of India’s former PM] Rajiv Gandhi | May 21 marks 33rd death anniversary of India’s former PM]( [[Revisiting the Railway strike of 1974] Revisiting the Railway strike of 1974]( Copyright© 2024, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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