Hockey India president and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) candidate for the Sundargarh Lok Sabha seat, Dilip Tirkey, urged the residents of his constituency to exercise their voting rights in the fifth phase of the ongoing elections. He emphasized that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections symbolize the essence of democracy, urging the people of Sundargarh to actively participate in this democratic process.
“I appeal to the people of Sundargarh to come out and cast their vote. It is a festival of democracy, and they should participate in it… Seeing the enthusiasm among the people, I can say that the voting percentage will increase here…,” Tirkey said.
He remarked that with the evident enthusiasm of the local population, the voting turnout is expected to rise in the Sundargarh constituency. He has completed a six-year tenure in the Rajya Sabha and is now vying for success in the elections. His goal is to break through the longstanding stronghold of the BJP in Sundargarh, a seat held by former Union Minister Jual Oram from 1998 to 2004 and then again in 2014 and 2019. Tirkey’s opponents in the upcoming elections will be Oram from the BJP and Janardan Dehury from the Congress party.
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are underway, scheduled across seven phases from April 19 to June 1. The final results will be announced on June 4. Voting commenced at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm, with eligible voters in line by closing time permitted to cast their ballots. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), a total of over 8.95 crore voters, comprising 4.69 crore males, 4.26 crore females, and 5409 third-gender electors, are participating in the fifth phase, deciding the fate of 695 candidates.