Madhya Pradesh: 52% till 5 pm; poll boycott at few seats

, April 17: Nearly 52 percent voting was recorded til 5 pm in the 10 Lok Sabha constituencies in

, which went to polls Thursday, officials said.

While balloting was brisk in some constituencies, a few seats, including Bhind, saw sluggish polling.

Voters at nine polling stations decided to boycott over various local issues, including land acquisition.

Elections took place in Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Guna, Sagar, Tikamgarh, Damoh, Khajuraho, Bhopal and Rajgarh constituencies.

Rajgarh saw enthusiastic voters turning up early to cast their votes. The constituency reported 55 percent polling.

In Bhind, the voting was barely 28 percent.

As many as 23 EVMs had to be changed after they malfunctioned. Besides, reports reaching here said there were also a few complaints of violence.

A 16,722,163-strong electorate, which includes 7,716,647 women, is eligible to vote in the second round of polling in the state.

As many as 142 candidates are in the fray.

Balloting is being held at 18,792 polling booths. A total of 150,336 polling personnel have been deployed.

The state will see three-phased polling, ending April 24.

The first phase of voting April 10 in nine constituencies saw 46.55 percent voter turnout.

IANS