53 pc voting recorded in Assam till 3 pm

Over 53 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 3 pm in six Lok Sabha seats of Assam during the final phase of polling in the state where one policeman was killed when a mob tried to capture a poll booth.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who has been representing Assam in the Rajya Sabha since 1991, voted at a polling booth in Dispur Government Higher Secondary School here along with his wife Gursharan Kaur.
Of the six Lok Sabha seats, Gauhati recorded 53.4 per cent voting, Kokrajhar 56.2 per cent, Dhubri 53.8 per cent, Barpeta 56 per cent, Mangaldoi 56 per cent and Nowgong 55 per cent, according to election office sources.

A policeman was killed and two others injured when voters clashed with them over EVM machines and snatched two INSAS rifles at a poll booth in Harbhanga Gossaigaon L P School in Kokrajhar Parliamentary seat, police said.
While Constable Tinku Ronghang died on the spot, another constable Nileswar Roy and police sectoral officer Yunus Ali were injured and admitted to hospital, they said.
EVM malfunctioning was reported in several polling centres but they were replaced, the sources said.

Despite the temperature hitting nearly 40 degrees Celsius in Guwahati and some other constituencies, voting was brisk with long queues during the early hours of voting.

Most of the voters who stood in queues in front of the polling stations from 6.30 am said they wanted to get indoors before it got too hot, while the women wanted to return home to complete their domestic chores.
First-time voters in the 18-21 years age group lined up in large numbers despite the sizzling heat.
Altogether 74 contestants, including nine women, are in the electoral battle for the six seats.
The first phase polling for five seats was held on April 7 and the second phase for three seats was held on April 12.