Guwahati: An estimated 12.86% of the total 7.96 lakh electors exercised their franchise till 11 a.m. on October 30 for bypolls to five Assembly constituencies in Assam where voting is underway with strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols, an official said.
The polling has been peaceful so far, and long queues were seen outside polling booths with voters and election officials adhering to COVID-19 protocols, he said.
Voting began at 7 a.m. in 1,176 polling stations in Gossaigaon, Bhabanipur, Tamulpur, Mariani and Thowra constituencies.
Altogether 31 candidates are in the fray, the Election Commission of India (ECI) official said.
In the backdrop of the pandemic, polling stations were sanitised and health safety protocols are strictly followed, he said.
By-elections to Gossaigaon and Tamulpur were necessitated due to death of the sitting MLAs, while the incumbents of Bhabanipur, Mariani and Thowra resigned from their seats to join the ruling BJP.
Polling will continue till 5 p.m. in these Assembly segments.
Live monitoring and webcasting tools are being used by the ECI, Assam Chief Electoral Officer, and District Election Officer for monitoring of poll day proceedings as per ECI’s direction. Webcasting is being done across all constituencies. Out of these, 285 are in 28-Gossaigaon, 213 at 41-Bhabanipur, 322 at 58-Tamulpur, 183 at 101-Mariani, and 173 at 107-Thowra constituencies. (PTI)
