Counting of votes begins for seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi

The counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections began on Tuesday morning across the country. In Delhi, the process is being conducted at seven designated locations, reflecting the city’s strategic importance in the national political landscape.

In northeast Delhi, the vote counting is taking place at ITI Nand Nagri. As per the Conduct of Election Rules, postal ballots are being counted first, followed by the votes recorded in electronic voting machines (EVMs), which began 30 minutes later. Both processes will continue simultaneously.

Additionally, VVPAT (voter-verifiable paper audit trail) slips from five randomly selected polling stations per assembly constituency are being matched with the EVM count for enhanced transparency, a practice implemented since 2019.

The extensive task of counting over 89.21 lakh votes began at 8 AM across Delhi’s seven constituencies, with a robust three-tier security arrangement deployed at each counting centre.

According to officials from the Delhi poll body, approximately 7,000 personnel are on duty to ensure a smooth and secure process.

“We have made all the necessary arrangements for the counting, which started at 8 AM sharp,” said Delhi Chief Electoral Officer P. Krishnamurthy. “The required security deployment includes a three-tier security arrangement at each counting centre. Our counting staff is trained and ready.”

Digital monitors have been set up outside the counting centres to share real-time trends, and poll body personnel will also make announcements on the candidates leading in the initial trends.

The counting process involves 21 to 28 rounds to tally the 89,21,495 votes cast by 58.69% of eligible voters, including 59.03% men, 58.29% women, and 28.01% third-gender individuals. The New Delhi constituency, with only 8,45,285 votes cast, is expected to complete counting sooner, whereas North-east Delhi, which recorded the highest voter turnout with 15,49,202 votes, may take longer.

The strong rooms, where the polled EVMs have been securely stored since May 25, were opened at around 6:30 AM in the presence of the candidates and their representatives. Each constituency has one counting centre equipped with 10 halls and multiple tables to facilitate the counting of votes from each assembly segment.

The location of these counting centres are SKV, Bharat Nagar in Chandni Chowk; ITI, Nand Nagri in North East Delhi; Sports Complex, CWG Village in East Delhi; Atal Adarsh Balika Vidyalaya, Gole Market in New Delhi; DTU, Shahbad Daulatpur in Northwest Delhi; NSUT, Dwarka in West Delhi; and Jijabai ITI for Women, Siri Fort in South Delhi.

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A total of 162 candidates contested the May 25 Lok Sabha polls in Delhi, with the North East Delhi constituency seeing the highest number of candidates (28), and the New Delhi constituency the least (17).

The Delhi Police has made elaborate security arrangements to prevent any untoward incidents during the counting process, deploying around 70 companies of the force across the seven centres.

Each centre is fortified with a three-layered security system, including paramilitary forces, Delhi Armed Police, and local police. The counting centres are also monitored with around 200 CCTV cameras and drones.   (With inputs from PTI)