C T Online Desk: Voting in the seventh phase of the local government polls is underway at 218 union parishads (UPs) in 20 districts of the country amid apprehensions of violence.
Polls opened on Monday at 8am and will continue till 4pm.
Incidents of violence and clashes among the rival candidates, vandalism and torching of rivals’ campaign offices have become widespread during the ongoing UP polls.
So far 95 people have been killed in violence during the last six phases of the UP polls.
Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are being used in nine UPs while there will be traditional ballot papers in the rest of the UPs for voting.
A total of 5,878 candidates — 576 for chairman post, 4,062 for general member and 1,236 for reserve member post — are contesting the polls.
A total of 71 candidates have already been elected unopposed. Of them, 11 were chairman aspirants while 47 general member and 13 reserve member contenders.
About 2,451,782 voters – males 1,257,586, females 1,198,229 and transgender ones 3 — will be able to exercise their franchise in the polls in 1,350 polling centres.
In the first phase, elections were held in 204 UPs on June 21 and 160 UPs on September 20 last year.
A total of 833 UPs went to polls in the second phase on November 11 while another 1,004 on November 28 in the third phase and 836 UPs went to the polls on December 26 in the fourth phase. Voting in the elections in 707 UPs was held on January 5 in the fifth phase and 219 UPs went to polls on January 31 in the sixth phase.
