Mumbai, April 10 (IANS) The first phase of elections in Maharashtra for 10 Lok Sabha seats got underway here Thursday morning with early voters queuing up outside polling stations, officials said.
A total of 201 candidates, including 90 independents, are in the fray and they are vying for attention of around 1.22 crore voters spread in Vidarbha region.
There a total of eight general category constituencies, while one is reserved for Scheduled Tribes and one for Scheduled Castes.
The maximum number of 33 candidates are contesting from Nagpur, while seven - the lowest - are in the fray in Akola.
Out of 201 candidates, there are only 15 women candidates, including two from prominent parties like Nationalist Congress Party and Aam Aadmi Party.
Among the political parties, the maximum number of seats are being contested by Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party with 10, followed by the Congress seven and Bharatiya Janata Party six candidates.
Shiv Sena has put up four candidates, NCP has three and CPI has one candidate.
In terms of electorate, the Nagpur constituency with 1.62 million voters is the largest while Bhandara-Gondia with a little over one million voters is the smallest.
The Election Commission has deployed 10 general observers, and 10 election expenditure observers to monitor the first phase of elections.
The 10 constituencies that went to polls Thursday are Akola, Amravati, Buldhana, Bhandara-Gondiya, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli-Chimur, Nagpur, Ramtek, Wardha and Yavatmal-Washim.
Prominent candidates whose fate will be sealed in EVMs include union Minister Praful Patel (NCP), Congress MP Vilas Muttemwar, BJP ex-president Nitin Gadkari, AAP state leader Anjali Damania, former minister and AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, state Congress ministers Shivajirao Moghe and Sanjay Deotale.
Then, there are Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar (BRP) - the grandson of B. R. Ambedkar, former model-actress Navneet Kaur Rana (NCP), realtor Gunvant Devpare (BSP) and independent candidate Balasaheb Darade, a former NASA consultant who is supported by Anna Hazare.
Sanctions on Pakistan, India welcomed with open heart; America also acknowledged the threat to the neighboring country
Given Pakistan's program to develop long-range ballistic missiles, the US on Thursday imposed new sanctions on it. The US believes that if nuclear-armed Pakistan develops long-range ballistic
Children seek to raise issues before lawmakers
New Delhi, April 5 (IANS) A manifesto written by children about issues facing them and what they need from the government and lawmakers was Saturday unveiled by 23 NGOs in the "Vote 4 Children"
Fear of Corona: The havoc of infection in these 10 countries of the world, those who survived in three waves are also in the grip of devastation
There seems to be no end to the corona infection at the moment. With the arrival of the new variant, Corona has caused havoc in those small countries of the world, which were less affected in the
BSF jawan captured by Pak Rangers: Second incident in 7 days; Couldn't see zero line due to fog
A Border Security Force (BSF) jawan posted at the India-Pakistan International Border in Punjab accidentally crossed the Zero Line at 7.40 am on Thursday and reached Pakistani territory. The young man
IPL 2025: Ashwin expressed displeasure over Rishabh Pant's decision, justified Digvesh Rathi's runout appeal
The last league match of IPL 2025 was full of excitement. Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) defeated Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by six wickets and entered Qualifier-1. An incident related to this
Raksha Bandhan 2023: Keep these things on the plate of Aarti on the day of Rakshabandhan, the relationship between brother and sister will deepen
Raksha Bandhan Aarti Thali: The festival of Rakshabandhan is celebrated every year on the full moon date of the month of Sawan. In Hinduism, this festival is considered a symbol of brother-sister
HC Notice to Centre, Delhi Government on Inmates' Condition
New Delhi, Feb 11 (IANS) The Delhi High Court Wednesday issued notice to the central and Delhi governments on the deplorable conditions of undertrial prisoners, including women, in Tihar Jail
Uttarkashi Rescue: This formula was useful in maintaining the morale of the workers, Arnold Dix praised the rescue.
The Covid formula also came in handy in boosting the morale of the 41 laborers trapped in the tunnel. Dr. Prem Pokhriyal, a senior physician posted in the district hospital, said that during the
Haldwani Violence: Stones, blood and distraught people on the road... voices of shouting and saving, horrifying picture of the chaos came to the fore.
The gateway to Kumaon i.e. our Haldwani. The atmosphere of Haldwani City, named after the abundant trees of Haldu, has been calm. The valleys here give peace and happiness. This city embraces everyone
The Nun 2 Review: A weak attempt to cash in on a successful franchise, audiences duped in the name of horror
'The Nun 2', the sequel to the film 'The Nun' released in 2018, has been released in theaters today. The story of this film begins from where the story of the film 'The Nun' ends. The only difference
