Polling for various local bodies in Gujarat concluded on Sunday with a turnout of under 50 per cent recorded in 15 municipal corporations amid the heatwave, officials said. According to the State Election Commission (SEC), while municipal corporations saw a tepid 48.55 per cent turnout, voter participation was higher in rural areas, with district and taluka panchayats recording 60.22 and 61.08 per cent, respectively.
The elections were held across 15 municipal corporations, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, and Rajkot, alongside 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats, making it one of the largest electoral exercises in the state ahead of the assembly polls due later next year.
As per the data released by the SEC at 6 pm, a turnout of 48.55 per cent was recorded in municipal corporations, 58.12 per cent in municipalities, 60.22 per cent in district panchayats and 61.08 per cent in taluka panchayats.
Among the municipal corporations, the newly formed Gandhidham Municipal Corporation in Kutch district recorded the lowest turnout at 39.85 per cent, and the Vapi civic body in Valsad district recorded 65.68 per cent.
Overall, the polling ended without any major untoward incidents.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel cast their votes in Ahmedabad, while Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi voted in Surat.
A three-tier security was in place, aided by CCTV surveillance and deployment of special squads in sensitive areas, police said.
The polls were held under revised norms for Other Backward Class (OBC) reservations, which required extensive delimitation and restructuring of wards in several districts.
If required, repolling will be held on April 27. Counting of votes will take place on April 28, and the entire election process is expected to be completed by April 30.
Besides the BJP, Congress and AAP, candidates of the Nationalist Congress Party and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) were also in the fray, leading to multi-cornered contests in several places.
Elections were held for the first time in nine newly-created municipal corporations, including Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar.
Also read: Gujarat local polls on April 26; CM appeals for 100 pc turnout
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