Polling at two booths in two Assembly constituencies in Delhi was delayed due to technical issues in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Voting could not be started at the scheduled time of 8 am at C10 block booth in Yamuna Vihar and Sardar Patel Vidyalaya booth number 114 in Lodhi Estate area, reported news agency ANI.
The Lodhi Estate polling booth is where Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has to cast her vote. Election Commission’s technical team reached the spot to fix the machines, the new agency reported.
Voting began at 8 am in the national capital amid tight security on Saturday for the Delhi Assembly elections. It will continue till 6 pm.
The pace of voting has, however, been very slow in Delhi so far. Till 11 am, a little over seven per cent voter turnout has been recorded, according to Election Commission’s Voter Turnout application. By this time in 2015, nearly 20 per cent voters had exercised their franchise in the Assembly elections.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and foreign minister S Jaishankar has urged people to come out in large numbers and vote in the ongoing Assembly elections. Kejriwal and Jaishankar were among the early voters. Congress president Sonia Gandhi, his son and party leader Rahul Gandhi, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal also cast their vote early on Saturday.
Over 1.4 crore people are eligible to cast their votes in the Delhi Assembly elections. Out of the total number of eligible voters, there are 81,05,236 male voters and 66,80,277 female voters. Besides this, there are 869 third gender voters.
As many as 13,571 polling stations are there at 2,688 locations.
To ensure peaceful and fair polling in all 70 constituencies, 190 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) have been deployed. Besides this, 19,000 Home Guards and 42,000 Delhi Police personnel are also keeping a keen watch at various places in the national capital.
The city is witnessing a triangular contest among the ruling Aam Aadmi party (AAP), which won a landslide majority in the last elections, the BJP and the Congress. In the last poll, the AAP had won 67 seats, the BJP three. Congress didn’t open its account.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that he is hoping for a hat-trick. Similarly, the BJP is hopeful to gain a majority by cashing in on the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Meanwhile, the Congress, which was in power for 15 years at a stretch in Delhi, is hoping for a revival.