Over 58% voter turnout in 2nd phase of Guj assembly polls (Ld)

Gandhinagar, Dec 5 (IANS) Over 58 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 p.m. on Monday in the polling for the second phase of the Gujarat assembly elections, officials said.Citing the Election Commission data, officials said 58.60 per cent turnout was witnessed across the state in the election held for 93 Assembly seats in 14 districts of Gujarat.Since there were long queues at 5 p.m. in many booths, the final voting percentage is likely to be around 70, officials estimated.Gujarat unit Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president C.R. Patil while thanking voters for coming out in large numbers, claimed that BJP would retain power with a landslide victory.The highest voting turnout was from Sabarkantha district -- 65.84 per cent while the lowest -- 53.57 per cent, was reported from Ahmedabad.At some places, heated arguments have taken place between BJP and Congress workers.In Panchmahal district, an assault took place on Congress candidate Prabhatsinh Chauhan in Godali village. His car was attacked by a group of people.Also, a minor scuffle took place between the Congress and the BJP workers in Anklav constituency.The first phase of polling was held on December 1. The results would be announced on December 5.
--IANS har/pgh

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