Bhubaneswar: A voter turnout of 62.46 per cent was recorded till 5pm Saturday in six Lok Sabha constituencies and 42 Assembly seats of Odisha where polling is underway in the third phase of the simultaneous elections
Among the six Lok Sabha constituencies, Jagatsinghpur recorded the highest voter turnout at 65.93 per cent while Bhadrak logged the lowest turnout at 58.21 per cent till 5pm.
Besides, Mayurbhanj recorded a voter turnout of 64.17 per cent, Balasore 61.91 per cent, Jajpur 62.92 per cent and Kendrapara 62.02 per cent, the EC data showed.
It can be mentioned here that Manoranjan Sahoo, an assistant teacher deputed as a booth level officer at Oleichandanapur in Jajpur district, complained of uneasiness and was taken to a local hospital where he was declared dead, they said.
Similarly, an elderly man also collapsed while standing in a queue in a polling booth in Iswarpur in Nilagiri Assembly segment in Balasore district. He was taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead, they said.
Both deaths were suspected to have been caused due to heatstroke, officials said.
Two persons were injured in separate group clashes outside a polling booth in Gop area in Jagatsinghpur Lok Sabha seat and Salipur under Kendrapara Lok Sabha seat.
Meanwhile, BJP’s Salipur candidate Arindam Ray alleged rigging by BJD workers in some of the booths of Salipur and Mahanga Assembly segments.
Replying to a question on the clashes, the CEO said no clash has taken place in any of the booths. However, the commission has received reports of disturbances outside booths and police have intervened in all cases immediately.
PNN & Agencies