Bhopal, April 26 (UNI) Approximately 13.82 per cent of over 1,11,62,000 voters cast their ballots on Friday in the first two hours of the second phase polling in the BJP-ruled state of Madhya Pradesh, as per the poll officials.
The highest turnout was in Hoshangabad with 15.95 percent polling till 9 am. Over 1,11,62,000 voters at 12,828 polling stations were deciding the fate of 80 candidates in Tikamgarh, Damoh, Satna, Rewa, Khajuraho, and Hoshangabad parliamentary seats.
BJP state president Vishnudutt Sharma is in the fray from Khajuraho as he seeks re-election.
Currently, the BJP holds all these six seats out of the total 29 in Madhya Pradesh. Except for Chhindwara, the BJP also holds the remaining 28 seats in the state.
In the first phase of voting on April 19, the average voter turnout was slightly over 67 percent, which was seven percent lower than the previous election.
Voting started at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm.
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There are 12,828 polling stations, including 1,136 operated by women and 32 by disabled employees.
Over 51,000 employees have been deployed for fair and peaceful voting, with 10 percent held in reserve.
Security arrangements have also been made for polling stations.
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