Bihar: 56% voter turnout recorded in 5 Lok Sabha seats till 5 pm

Khagaria/Araria/Patna: A voter turnout of 56 per cent was recorded till 5 pm in the five Lok Sabha seats of Bihar that went to polls in the third phase of the general elections on Tuesday, an official said.

Voting in 9,848 polling stations in Araria, Jhanjharpur, Supaul, Madhepura and Khagaria seats, all currently held by the NDA, began at 7 am amid tight security and will continue till 6 pm, he said.

Supaul recorded the highest turnout of 58.91 per cent, followed by Araria (58.57 per cent), Madhepura (54.92 per cent), Khagaria (54.35 per cent) and Jhanjharpur (53.29 per cent), till 5 pm.

The electoral fate of 54 candidates will be decided by 98,60,397 voters in the third phase of polling in the state.

Earlier in the day, talking to reporters in Patna, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary said, "I urge people to exercise their franchise in large numbers. People must vote for the overall development of the country as well as the state under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."