Chandigarh, October 21: Polling began on Monday morning in 90 assembly constituencies of Haryana and till noon the poll percentage in the state was 23.12 per cent.
Polling began at 7 am and would continue till 6 pm, officials said.
As per the Election Commission data, brisk polling was going on in many districts.
Chief Electoral Officer Anurag Agarwal said polling had been peaceful so far in the state and till noon it has been recorded at 23.12 per cent.
Agarwal said that looking at the previous trends the voter turnout could cross 80%.
He said nowhere the polling was disrupted but at 10-15 places EVMs malfunctioned and had been replaced.
Highest polling has been reported from Bhiwani district where close to 37 % polling has been reported by noon. Among the Assembly constituencies, Bawani Khera (SC) reported the highest polling at 40 per cent.
Agarwal said that at Karnal, special arrangements had been made for physically-challenged voters as sign language videos were being shown.
On the Assandh controversy, Agarwal said Bakshish Singh Virk replied that the video which went viral was doctored and was not shown in the right perspective. “The video has been sent for forensic analysis. If he is found guilty, an FIR will be registered against him. It is a case of violation of model code of conduct. The rejection of candidature is not prescribed in rules,” Agarwal said.
He reiterated that EVMs could not be manipulated.
As many as 1,169 candidates, including 105 women of various political parties, are contesting the election.
The prominent figures include Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, JJP’s Dushyant Chautala and INLD’s Abhay Singh Chautala.
Haryana’s lone woman minister Kavita Jain, along with her husband and BJP leader Rajiv Jain and their two children, both first-time voters, was among the early voters to cast vote in Sonepat.
Chief Minister Khattar was travelling by a Jan Shatabdi train from Chandigarh to cast his vote in Karnal from where he is seeking re-election.
Dushyant Chautala, along with wife Meghna and MLA-mother Naina Chautala, rode a tractor to reach the polling booth in Sirsa.
Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, along with wife Gayatri, exercised his right to franchise in Kaithal while Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja exercised her vote in Sirsa.
Wrestler-turned-politician and BJP candidate from Dadri, Babita Phogat, also cast her vote from her native village in Bhiwani along with father Mahavir Phogat and sister Geeta Phogat.
Some contesting candidates also offered prayers at temples and other places of worship before casting their vote.
The BJP led by Khattar has set a target of winning 75 seats, while the Congress is hoping to make a comeback following a change in guard in the state.
Currently, the BJP has 48 members in the state assembly.
As many as 19,578 polling stations had been set, including 13,837 in rural areas, Chief Electoral Officer, Haryana, Anurag Agarwal said.
Tight security arrangements had been made and over 75,000 security personnel mobilised for the polls, DGP Manoj Yadava said earlier. With PTI
