Over 66 pc turnout recorded in second phase of LS polls: EC

A 66.63 per cent voter turnout was recorded in the second phase of Lok Sabha polls on Thursday in 95 seats spread in 11 states and a Union Territory, the Election Commission said.

Barring sporadic incidents of violence, the polling went off peacefully, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha said.

Polling was held for 95 Lok Sabha seats in 11 states, with Tamil Nadu voting in 38 of its 39 constituencies, and the union territory of Puducherry.

While elections were cancelled in Tamil Nadu's Vellore constituency over fear of abuse of money power, poll was postponed to April 23 in Tripura (East) seat as there were apprehensions that law and order could be disturbed by miscreants.

Two violence-related deaths were reported in the past 24 hours, including that of a woman polling personnel who was killed by Maoists on Wednesday in Odisha. Another death was reported Thursday. Two other people, including a voter and a polling officer, died of apparent heart attack.

There was reports of the electronic voting machines being damaged in Manipur and Uttar Dinajpur in West Bengal.

The interim voter turnout stood at 43.4 per cent in Jammu and Kashmir, the lowest and 78 per cent -- the highest Thursday -- in Puducherry.

Udhampur and Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir went for polls in this phase.

West Bengal, Assam, Manipur, Chhattisgarh, Puducherry and Tamil Nadu reported a turnout above 70 per cent.

Referring to the issue of 'glitches in EVMs, deputy election commissioner Sudip Jain said, a total of 1,000 ballot units, 769 control units 2,766 paper trail machines were replaced.

One control unit and at least one balot unt make up for an EVM.

He said if a ballot unit or control unit is replaced, the paper trail machines needs to be replaced along with it. "Hence the higher number of replacements."