As it happened in the previous two phases, the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has witnesses over 60% presence of voters in its third spell of state elections till Sunday afternoon.
Punjab, too, registered such a hefty figure with 63.44% people casting their votes in all 117 assembly seats of the state till 5pm.
Even though voting in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh began at 8 am and 7 am respectively, it ended in both states at 6 pm.
Scenario in Punjab
With 2.14 crore voters to choose from 1,304 candidates for 117 seats, Punjab witnessed a contest between the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party, the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bahujan Samaj Party coalition, the Bharatiya Janata Party, Punjab Lok Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt), and the Sanyukt Samaj Morcha – a political front of various farmer bodies.
Incumbent Chief Minister and Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi contested from Chamkaur Sahib and Bhadaur constituencies.
Besides Channi, other prominent candidates in the fray included Aam Aadmi Party’s chief ministerial face Bhagwant Mann, Punjab Congress President Navjot Singh Sidhu, former Chief Ministers Amarinder Singh and Parkash Singh Badal and Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal.
Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma and former Union minister Vijay Sampla also contested the polls.
In the 2017 elections, Congress had secured a majority by winning 77 seats. The Aam Aadmi Party-led coalition had won 22 seats and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance 18.
Uttar Pradesh polls
Voting in Uttar Pradesh was held for 59 Assembly constituencies spread across 16 districts. As many as 2.15 crore voters were to cast their votes to elect from 627 candidates.
Elections are being held in Firozabad, Farrukhabad, Kanpur Dehat, Kanpur Nagar, Etah, Hamirpur, Hathras, Mahoba, Kasganj, Mainpuri, Kannauj, Etawah, Auraiya, Jalaun, Jhansi and Lalitpur.
Among the prominent faces in the fray in this phase were BJP leader Satish Mahana and Ramvir Upadhaya and Congress candidate Louise Khurshid, the wife of Congress leader Salman Khurshid.
Uttar Pradesh minister Ramnaresh Agnihotri and former Indian Police Service Officer Asim Arun were also in the fray.
Polling was also held at the Karhal Assembly seat from where Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav contested.
In the 2017 state Assembly elections, the National Democratic Alliance had won 325 of the 403 seats. The Congress-Samajwadi Party had secured 54 seats and the Bahujan Samaj Party 19.
Previous voting turnouts
Uttar Pradesh in the first phase polls on February 10 logged a voting turnout of 60.51%. The most populous Indian state in the second phase of the elections on February 14 recorded a whopping 62.22% voter turnout.
On February 14, the Indian states of Goa and Uttarakhand registered 78.94% and 62.51% voter turnouts respectively.
The Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Punjab, and Uttarakhand went on polls on February 10, with the first phase election in the country's most populous state held then.
The next four phases of voting in the state are slated for February 23, February 27, March 3, and March 7.
As the single phase polls in Punjab, Goa, and Uttarakhand have taken place, Manipur remains the only state-- except Uttar Pradesh-- to see voting in two phases on February 27 and March 3.
Counting of votes in all five states will take place on March 10.
All eyes on UP
Despite four other states going to the polls, the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh carries far more significance with analyses showing that the party that wins the state ends up ruling the country.
The polls result will be closely watched for clues ahead of parliamentary elections in 2024, reports Reuters.
The state sends the largest number of MPs - 80 - to India's parliament and it is often said that the party that wins the state ends up ruling the country, according to BBC.
Hindu hardliner Yogi Adityanath is seeking re-election as the Uttar Pradesh chief minister.
His candidacy comes despite sharp criticism in the past by opposition figures and the Muslim minority for a Hindu-first agenda that has inflamed communal tensions.
