Polling began at 7 am on Tuesday (April 6) for 40 seats in the third and final phase of the Assam Assembly election 2021 amid tight security.
In this phase, there are a total of 337 candidates, whose fate will be locked in the EVM machines by a total of 79,19,641 eligible voters.
People have started voting for electing their representative to the 126-member Assam Legislative Assembly.
People were seen waiting for exercising their franchise in long queues in many of the polling stations in Guwahati, which is also going to polls in this phase.
Face masks are being provided to the voters by the Election Election as protective measures for the COVID19 pandemic.
Also read: Campaigning for third phase of Assam Assembly elections ends, 40 seats go to polls on April 6
The 40 Assembly constituencies in 12 districts in Lower Assam are going to polls in the final phase of the Assam Assembly election on Tuesday.
The polling for the first phase of the Assam Assembly election was held on March 27 while the second phase of the election was held on April 1, 2021.
Also read: Assam Assembly election: Over 79 lakh voters to decide fate of 337 candidates in phase III
The counting of votes will be held on May 2, 2021.
There are a total of 25 women candidates in the fray.
Of the total 79,19,641 voters, who are eligible to vote in the third phase, 40,11,539 are males, 39,07,963 females and 139 are transgender.
Out of the 40 Assembly seats, six seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribe (ST) and two for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates.
The constituency which has the highest number of electors in phase three is Dispur with 607 polling booths having 4, 11,636 electors.
The constituency having the lowest number of electors in this phase is Chapaguri in Baksa with 236 polling stations having 1, 59,257 voters.
Three of the 40 Assembly seats are in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).
The fate of 20 sitting MLAs, including 8 from the Congress, 5 from the BJP, 3 each from the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) and Bodoland people’s Front (BPF) and one from Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), will be decided in this phase.
Assam’s BJP minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is contesting from the Jalukbari Assembly constituency.
BJP state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass is contesting from Patacharkuchi constituency while BJP minister Siddhartha Bhattacharya is contesting from Gauhati East.
BJP minister Chandra Mohan Patowary is contesting from Dharampur, AGP minister Phanibhushan Choudhury is contesting from Bongaigaon, BPF minister Pramila Rani Brahma is contesting from Kokrajhar East and Kokrajhar MP Naba Sarania is contesting from Barama.
Singer and AGP candidate Kalpana Patowary is contesting from the Sarukhetri constituency.
For the Dispur Assembly seat, journalists Manjit Mahanta and Hridyananda Gogoi are fighting on Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) tickets respectively.
The voting will culminate at 6 pm.
Assam Assembly election (Phase 3) constituencies:
Mankachar Salmara South
Dhubri Gauripur
Golakganj Bilasipara West
Bilasipara East Goalpara East
Goalpara West Jaleswar
Gossaigaon Kokrajhar West (ST)
Kokrajhar East (ST) Sidli (ST)
Bijni Sorbhog
Bhabanipur Tamulpur
Barama (ST) Chapaguri (ST)
Bongaigaon Abhayapuri North
Dudhnoi (ST) Boko (SC)
Chaygaon Palasbari
Hajo Jalukbari
Dispur Gauhati East
Gauhati West Barkhetri
Abhayapuri South (SC) Patacharkuchi
Barpeta Jania
Baghbar Sorukhetri
Chenga Dharmapur