UP Elections: Polling Enters Final Phase, Exit Polls To Begin In Evening.

Over the past few weeks India has witnessed a high stakes battle in Assembly elections as five states took to election booths to vote for the party that will govern them for the tenure.

Today elections will conclude in five states with the seventh and final phase of voting on March 7. While the counting of the votes will be done on March 10, exit poll results will be out this evening after the final phase of voting concludes in Uttar Pradesh at 6 pm.

Five states – Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Goa – went to the polls in seven phases from February 10 to March 7. While Uttarakhand, Punjab, and Goa voted in single phases, Manipur voted in two phases and Uttar Pradesh voted in seven phases.

As voting concludes in Uttar Pradesh today, all eyes will be on the exit poll results 2022 this evening. The exit poll findings are released only after polling concludes in all districts and phases.

Exit Polls

The exit poll results 2022 for Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur elections will be declared after polling for the last phase concludes in Uttar Pradesh today.

Polling in the seventh phase began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm in nine districts of the state – Azamgarh, Mau, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Varanasi, Mirzapur, Bhadohi and Sonbhadra.

 In this round, all eyes are on Varanasi, the parliamentary seat of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Key Points.

1. The 54 seats spread across nine districts — Azamgarh, Mau, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Varanasi, Mirzapur, Bhadohi and Sonbhadra — are voting today.
2. Uttar Pradesh has recorded a voter turnout of 46.40% till 3 pm, according to the election commission.
3. The eight seats in Varanasi and its adjoining districts — Banaras City South, Banaras City North, Shivpur, Sewapuri, Cantonment, Ajgara, Pindra and Rohaniya — are witnessing a multi-cornered contest.
4. Last time, the BJP and its allies swept the region. Six seats had gone to the BJP. Of the remaining two, one seat had gone to BJP ally Anupriya Patel’s Apna Dal (S) and one to Om Prakash Rajbhar’s Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), which is now partnering Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party.
5. Five of the seats are within PM Modi’s Parliamentary constituency of Varanasi. A strong poll battle is on the cards in neighbouring Mirzapur and Jaunpur too, where the BJP had won hands down last time.
6. Besides 3 lakh Muslims, Varanasi also has over 3.25 lakh Vaisyas, Patels known locally as OBC Kurmi (2 lakh), Yadavs (1.5 lakh), Thakurs (1 lakh), Dalits 80,000 and other OBC castes 70,000.
7. The day is expected to belong to the smaller allies on both sides- Akhilesh Yadav’s partners Apna Dal (K), Mr Rajbhar’s SBSP and the BJP allies Apna Dal and the NISHAD party.
8. Akhilesh Yadav has nominated four SP candidates in Varanasi and has left four seats other allies, Apna Dal (Kamerwadi) headed by Anupriya’s mother Krishna Patel and two for Rajbhar’s SBSP.
9. The BJP has fielded its candidates on seven seats and left the Rohania constituency for Union minister Anupriya Patel headed Apna Dal (S).
10. The counting of votes of Uttar Pradesh and other four states will take place on March 10.