At the break of dawn, the electoral process commenced in 88 constituencies spanning 13 states and Union territories, marking the advent of the second phase of the 7-phase Lok Sabha elections on Friday. The subsequent five phases of this electoral saga are slated to unfold until June 1, culminating in the grand spectacle of vote tallying on June 4.
A plethora of 1,202 contenders, among them notable figures such as Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor, Om Birla, and Hema Malini, are poised to stake their electoral fortunes in the crucible of phase two of the Lok Sabha elections on this day of April 26.
Rajiv Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner, has affirmed the meticulous preparations orchestrated to ensure the seamless execution of the electoral process during this second phase of the Lok Sabha polls. He has fervently implored the citizenry to actively partake in the sacrosanct ritual of democracy, thereby amplifying its vibrancy.
The electoral battleground for the second phase encompasses 20 constituencies in Kerala, 14 in Karnataka, 13 in Rajasthan, eight each in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, seven in Madhya Pradesh, five each in Assam and Bihar, three in Bengal and Chhattisgarh, and solitary constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, and Tripura.
The formidable task of overseeing this electoral extravaganza falls upon the shoulders of over 16 lakh electoral functionaries, deployed across a staggering 1.67 lakh polling booths, catering to an electorate surpassing 15.88 crore individuals, as attested by the Election Commission (EC). Among these voters, there exist 8.08 crore individuals of the male persuasion, 7.8 crore females, and 5,929 individuals identifying as the third gender. Additionally, a contingent of 34.8 lakh nascent voters stands poised to exercise their electoral franchise for the very first time. Furthermore, the ranks of the electorate are bolstered by a cadre of 3.28 crore youthful voters, aged between 20 and 29 years, as delineated by the electoral authority. Of the vast throng of 1,202 candidates vying for electoral supremacy, 1,098 are of the male ilk, 102 hail from the female echelon, while two individuals represent the third gender.