The second phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha election began on Friday, with 88 constituencies across 12 states and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir going to the polls.

Voting is underway in all 20 seats of Kerala, 14 in Karnataka, 13 in Rajasthan, eight each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, six in Madhya Pradesh, five each in Assam and Bihar, three each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal and one each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir.

While the estimated voter turnout till 5 pm in Assam was 70.66%, it was 53.03% in Bihar and 72.13% in Chhattisgarh. Jammu and Kashmir recorded a voter turnout of 67.22% till 5 pm, according to data released by the Election Commission.

Voter turnout till 5 pm in other states was: Kerala 63.97%, Madhya Pradesh 54.83%, Maharashtra 53.51%, Manipur 76.06%, Rajasthan 59.19%, Tripura 77.53%, Uttar Pradesh 52.74% and West Bengal 71.84%.

As at 5 pm, Karnataka had recorded a voter turnout of 63.90%. The figure was 48.61% in the Bangalore Central constituency, 50.04% in Bangalore North, 61.78% in Bangalore Rural and 49.37% in Bangalore South.

Madhya Pradesh’s Betul constituency was also supposed to go to polls in the second phase, but the voting was postponed to May 7 after the death of Bahujan Samaj Party candidate on April 9, according to PTI.

Among the prominent candidates in the fray during the second phase are the Congress’ Rahul Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor and Bhupesh Baghel, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Om Birla and Tejasvi Surya, the Janata Dal (Secular)’s HD Kumaraswamy and the Communist Party of India’s Annie Raja.

As the polls went underway, BJP President JP Nadda in a video message accused the Congress of trying to snatch away the rights of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes. Nadda reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comment from Sunday, alleging that the Congress would distribute citizens’ property among “infiltrators” and “those who have more children” – a dog-whistle reference to Muslims.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, on the other hand, urged voters to not be swayed by “diversionary tactics” and cast their ballots to protect Indian democracy, reported PTI. In a post on X, Kharge wrote: “Do not forget that this is not an ordinary election. It is an election to protect democracy from the clutches of dictatorship.”

West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar accused the Trinamool Congress of booth jamming – slowing the pace of voting by making citizens stand in queues for long periods of time – in a few places, but did not provide the exact locations.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman cast her vote in Bengaluru on Friday. “This election is definitely on the grounds that people want stable, good leadership to take over,” she told reporters, PTI reported. “It can't be on the grounds that I don't like somebody so I don't want that somebody. Political parties will have to give good proposals.”

Congress leader KC Venugopal urged voters to come out and cast their vote, reported PTI.

“Voters have to come out and vote, this should be first and foremost priority,” he said. “This country now needs a change, they have to come out and vote for a change. I am very confident, I believe in people of Alleppey [in Kerala’s Alappuzha], they [voters] will give maximum majority [to Congress].”

The Opposition leader said that he is confident that the state-level Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala will win 20 out of 20 seats.

The first phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha election on April 19 saw voting on 102 parliamentary constituencies across 17 states and four Union Territories. The Election Commission said that an estimated 62.34% of the electorate turned up to vote on that day. The final figures have not been released yet.