By-election: Moderate to brisk voting till noon

Voting is underway for the by-polls of three Lok Sabha constituencies and 33 Assembly segments across 10 states.

The three Lok Sabha seats where be-election is being held are Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh), Vadodara (Gujarat) and Medak (Telangana).

Vadodara constituency which was vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is undergoing a by-election.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Ranjan Ben Bhatta in Vadodara against Narendra Rawat of the Congress.

Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav’s grand nephew Tej Pratap Yadav, a Leeds University graduate, is debuting as the party’s candidate from Mainpuri seat, a constituency vacated by the SP supremo as he retained Azamgarh.

Besides, the states where by-election is being held in assembly constituencies include, Uttar Pradesh (11), Gujarat (9), Rajasthan (4), West Bengal (2), Assam, Tripura, Chhattisgarh, Sikkim, Tripura and Andhra Pradesh-- all one each.

But the limelight is focused on West Bengal where by-election of two crucial Chowringhee and Basirhat (South) Assembly seats is taking place and Uttar Pradesh where are being help for 11 assembly and one parliamentary seat.

The Mamata Banerjee-led ruling Trinamool Congress’ image is at stake which has been badly hit following the arrest of two of its party leaders in the multi-crore Saradha chit-fund scam and several others being grilled by CBI.

With the ruling party under fire from political rivals over the ponzi scheme scandal, the opposition parties are smelling a chance to stage a comeback in the by-elections by harping on the issue of corruption.

As per media reports, moderate to brisk voting is took place in the first few hours.

"20.16 percent polling was reported from Chowringhee and 36.76 percent from Basirhat (South) till 11 a.m.," told an Election Commission official.

Though some stray incidents of clash are reported by a section of the media, the polling was largely peaceful.

On the other hand, stakes are high for BJP in U.P.

The question whether “Modi-wave” will persist here too after the General Elections will be answered.

The lone Lok-sabha seat of the state where by-polls is taking place is regarded as the “fort” of Samajwadi leader Mulayam Singh Yadav.

In the Lok Sabha elections held in May, where BJP swept 71 out of the state’s 80 seats, will try to increase the strength, whereas SP will try to hold on to its seat.

Voting is being held under tight security in Mainpuri, the lone Lok Sabha constituency.

Long lines of voters were seen outside polling stations in different assembly constituencies, media reported.

Voting started in slow pace in Gujarat's one Lok Sabha and nine assembly seats during the early hours of Saturday.

Only eight to 10 percent of the over 3.6 million electors had cast their votes in the initial hours, officials said.

The voter turnout was lukewarm during the morning hours in the by-polls for four assembly constituencies in Rajasthan, media reported.

Polling is underway for insurgency-hit Antagarh assembly seat in Chhattisgarh amid tight security.

By-polls are being held for the Medak Lok Sabha constituency in Telangana, vacated by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief K Chandrasekhar Rao after he became the first Chief Minister of newly-born state of Telangana.

Apart from that, voting is also underway in Nandigama assembly seat in Andhra Pradesh and Rangang-Yangang assembly constituency in Sikkim.

The counting will take place on Tuesday.