About 58 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 pm on Thursday in Uttar Pradesh, where polling was held across 58 assembly constituencies in 11 districts.
Polling closed at 6 pm but those already in queue were allowed to vote, Election Commission officials said.
There were reports of technical snags in EVMs at some places, but voting was peaceful, they added.
"An average 57.79 per cent polling was witnessed in Uttar Pradesh till 5 pm," an official said.
Additional Chief Election Officer (ACEO) B D Ram Tiwari said, "There were reports of a technical error in EVMs at some places."
Those EVMs were being replaced as the reports came in, he added.
On the Samajwadi Party's allegation that poor voters were not allowed to exercise their franchise in Dundukheda village in the Kairana assembly constituency, Tiwari said the district magistrate concerned was asked to look into the matter.
Electronic Voting Machines being sealed after conclusion of first phase of UP Assembly elections; Visuals from Public Inter College polling station in Kairana, Shamli
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) February 10, 2022
The district has recorded 61.78% voter turnout till 5 pm pic.twitter.com/eIN9yrGSNJ
Taking a swipe at political rivals, he said, "Tell me whether the National Conference and the PDP are parties of families or not? In Haryana, isn't the Lok Dal a party of a family? In Uttar Pradesh, isn't the Samajwadi Party of one family?" "Isn't the RJD in Bihar a party of a family? In West Bengal, the party of Mamata (Banerjee) belongs to a family, is it not," he further asked. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
"The double engine government in Uttar Pradesh has brought double corruption. Therefore, vote to remove corruption from the state so that baba ji (Adityanath) returns to his home after the results (of elections) are declared," Yadav said while addressing a joint rally with alliance partner Jayant Chaudhary of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD). (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Asha Singh, the mother of the rape survivor, who has won her legal battle against former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, said she is contesting the polls to ensure justice for the victims of such a heinous crime. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
His attack came after Adityanath asked people to return the BJP to power or face the possibility of the state turning into a "Kashmir, Kerala or Bengal". (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Addressing an election campaign in Rampur, the Congress general secretary and party's UP affairs in-charge also accused the BJP-led Centre of destroying trade and businesses with ill-conceived policies. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly V D Satheesan on Thursday launched a scathing attack against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his alleged disparaging comments against Kerala ahead of Assembly polls in the north Indian state. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Sonam Kinnar, who was on November 17 appointed vice-chairperson of the newly formed UP Transgender Welfare Board with the status of minister of state, and Payal Kinnar, who was made state president of SP Kinnar Mahasabha, have been travelling in different districts to garner support for their parties. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Adityanath made the remark in a six-minute video message on Twitter, on the eve of Thursday's polling for the first phase of the assembly elections in UP. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
A bridegroom voted before tying nuptial knot in Baghpat.#UPElections2022 #ElectionsWithTNIE pic.twitter.com/BvPwaqxfgb
— The New Indian Express (@NewIndianXpress) February 10, 2022
The Allahabad High Court on Thursday granted bail to Ashish Mishra, the son of Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni, in the Lakhimpur incident in which eight people including four farmers were killed. The Lucknow bench of the court had reserved its order on January 18 on Ashish Mishra's plea after concluding the hearing through video-conferencing. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
#WATCH | Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra explains her party's manifesto for UP Assembly elections to a motor mechanic in Rampur pic.twitter.com/Yww7yi1q8p
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) February 10, 2022
"There are complaints about EVM malfunctioning. It seems the youth and farmers are pressing the button in full rage!! Request you not so hard, press the button in favour of the alliance with love!!," Chaudhary tweeted in a lighter vein in Hindi. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Referring to the communal riots that broke out in Muzaffarnagar district in 2013, the national spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) said, "the result of 2013 was a trial, the stadiums of that trial have been demolished here. The stadiums where these matches were played remain demolished now." (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Chhedu Chamar has filed his nomination as an independent candidate from the Sirathu assembly segment in Kaushambi district for the Uttar Pradesh elections. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
35.03% voter turnout recorded till 1pm in the first phase of #UttarPradeshElections2022 pic.twitter.com/vrkvVC05LM
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) February 10, 2022
On Samajwadi Party's allegation that poor voters were not allowed to exercise their franchise in Dundukheda village in the Kairana assembly constituency, Tiwari said the District Magistrate concerned has been asked to look into the matter. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Announcing his support for the SP candidate Pankaj Malik in Charthawal town in the Muzaffarnagar district, Roshan said he has resigned from the AAP. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
The BJP leader, who is campaigning for the UP assembly polls, hailed the Yogi Adityanath government for its work to ensure women's safety, respect and self-reliance in the last five years and said that the party has resolved to continue in the same spirit in future. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
After the release of manifestoes by the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP) the previous day, the Congress came up with its poll promises on Wednesday. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
Elections will be held in 58 assembly seats across 11 districts of western Uttar Pradesh, where the BKU, an influential farmers' union of north India, holds a considerable sway among the farming community. (READ FULL STORY HERE)
