VIIth phase UP election witnesses 45 per cent turnout

New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) The seventh and the last phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, spread over 59 constituencies in nine districts, today witnessed a low turnout of 45 per cent.

Addressing newspersons, Deputy Election Commissioner (DEC) R Balakrishnan said with the completion of the last phase of polls, the average turnout for all these seven comes to around 46 per cent which was over seven per cent less than what was recorded in the previous assembly elections.

He said in today's poll a total of 17014 polling stations were set up for the convenience of the electors and a total of 19400 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were used.

A total of 1.77 crore electors were listed in this phase of the polls.

He said the election was ''totally free from any violence or any other sort of poll-related irrgularities.'' However, some of the EVM machines had to be replaced as they repeated names of some of the voters and omitted names of others.

The Commission has ordered an inquiry into this matter, he added.

UNI