KOLKATA, Apr 29:
West Bengal’s high-stakes assembly elections ended on Wednesday with a massive voter turnout of 91.66 per cent in the second and final phase, capping one of the most intense electoral contests in the recent years and setting the stage for a far-reaching verdict on whether Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will continue her dominance or the BJP will break the TMC’s hold in the state.
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With 91.66 per cent at the closing of the voting, and reportedly lakhs of voters still waiting in queues to cast their ballots, the second phase of polls across 142 constituencies in South Bengal looked poised to match the first phase’s record voter participation of 93.19 per cent.
The metropolis of Kolkata recorded a turnout of around 87 per cent at that time, with Purba Bardhaman district topping the chart at 92.46 per cent.
A communication from the Election Commission said 91.66 per cent turnout was recorded in the second phase of polls till 7.45 pm, putting the combined poll percentage over the two-phases at 92.47 per cent. The first phase of polling was held on April 23 and the counting will be on May 4.
“This is the highest-ever recorded poll-participation since Independence in West Bengal,” it said. (PTI)
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