In a polling marred by an incident of violence which claimed one life and left another person injured in Osmanabad parliamentary constituency, as many as 53.40 per cent of total 2.09 crore voters exercised their franchise till 5 pm in eleven constituencies that went to polls in the third phase of high-stake Lok Sabha polls held on Tuesday.
On a day when Kolhapur registered a maximum 63.71 per cent polling while prestigious Baramati registered a lowest 45.68 per cent voting till 5 pm, a man was knifed to death and one person sustained stab wounds in a brawl that broke out near a polling station in Patsangvi village in Bhoom taluka of Osmanabad district.
The tentative final polling percentage figures are likely to be released either later on Tuesday night.
As per the revised figures put out by the Election Commission of India on April 30, 2024, 63.71 per cent of total voters exercised their rights in five constituencies in the first phase of the Lok Sabha held in Maharashtra on April 19, while 62.71 per cent of the total electorate voted in eight Lok Sabha constituencies during the second phase of polling held on April 26.
Compared with the percentages of voting that took place in the first and second phases of Lok Sabha polling held earlier, the polling witnessed in the third phase of the Lok Sabha on Tuesday is not very encouraging which can at 60 per cent of voter turnout best be called at moderate polling.
The polling percentages in 11 Lok Sabha constituencies at 5 pm are as follows: Latur-55.38 per cent, Sangli-52.56 per cent, Baramati-45.68 per cent, Hatkanangale-62.18 per cent, Kolhapur-63.71 per cent, Madha -50 per cent, Osmanabad-52.78 per cent, Raigad-50.31 per cent, Ratnagiri -Sindhudurg-53.75 per cent, Satara-54.11 per cent and Solapur-49.11 per cent. Together, the average works out 53.40 per cent.
Since the third phase final phase polling may be around 60 per cent, it is not clear yet as to what impact it will have on the Lok Sabha polls in eleven constituencies that went to polls on Tuesday.
What has surprised many in the State political circles is that Baramati recorded as low a polling percentage of 45.68 till 5 pm. Even if Baramati records an additional 10 per cent voting in the last hour of polling, the final polling will be around 56 per cent, which is far lower than the final polling percentage of 61.82 recorded in 2019 in the home turf of Pawars.
It is difficult to hazard a guess on what impact the low polling percentage will have on the results in the Baramati constituency where a bitter electoral battle is being waged between prominent members of the Pawar family -- Sharad Pawar's daughter and three-time MP Supriya Sule and his estranged nephew and deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra Pawar.
In Kolhapur and Satara where two scions of iconic Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj -- Shrimant Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj and Shrimant Chhatrapati Udyanraje Bhosale -are trying their luck in Kolhapur and Satara constituencies respectively, the polling percentages at 5 pm were 63.71 and 54.11 respectively.
In Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg where senior BJP leader, former Chief Minister and current Union Minister Narayan Rane is seeking election to the Lok Sabha for the first time, 53.75 per cent of votes turned out to vote. In Solapur where veteran Congress leader and former Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's daughter Praniti Shinde (Solapur) is contesting, the voter turnout was a relatively low 49.11 at 5 pm.
In Osmanabad (now known as Dharashiv) where sitting MP Omraje Nimbalkar of the Shiv Sena (UBT) is contesting against his own sister-in-law sister in law Archana Patil of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, the polling percentage was 52.78 per cent at 5 pm.
In Madha from where Sharad Pawar had been elected to Lok Sabha in 2009 polls, sitting BJP MP is taking on Dhairyasheel Mohite-Patil of the NCP (Sharad Pawar). Here, 50 per cent of total voters turned out to exercise their rights.
In Latur (SC) where sitting BJP MP Sudhakar Shrungare (BJP) is taking on a rank new comer Dr Shivaji Kalge of the Congress, the polling percentage was 55.18. In Sangli where sitting BJP MP Sanjay Patil is pitted against Chandrahar Patil (SS-UBT) and a formidable Independent candidate Vishal Prakashbapu Patil, 52.56 percent of the electorate voted till 5 pm.
In Hatkanangle where a three-cornered contest is being witnessed among the Dhairyashil Mane of the Shinde-Sena, Raju Shetti of the Swabhimani Paksha and Satyajeet Patil of the Shiv Sena (UBT), the polling percentage was 62.18.
