80% voter turnout at Rajasthan's Karanpur assembly seat

Jaipur: A turnout of more than 80 per cent was recorded in Karanpur as polling concluded for the Rajasthan assembly constituency where minister Surendra Pal Singh is contesting as the BJP nominee.

Voting was held peacefully across booths, said officials. The counting of votes will take place on January 8.

The election for the seat was postponed due to the death of the Congress candidate and the then MLA Gurmeet Singh Koonar. The Congress has fielded Koonar's son, Rupinder Singh, from the seat.

Surendra Pal Singh has already been inducted into the Rajasthan cabinet after the BJP won the assembly polls, bagging 115 of the 199 seats where the elections were held.

Voting began at 7 am and concluded at 6 pm. Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta said around 80.50 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise by the end of polling.

"Voters are coming to cast their votes amid severe cold and fog," he said.

The Congress has criticised the BJP nominee's induction in the ministry, terming it a violation of the model code of conduct.

As per the rules, Surendra Pal Singh has six months to get elected to the assembly since the date of his induction as a minister in the state cabinet.

According to officials, the Karanpur assembly constituency has 2,40,826 voters — 1,25,850 men, 1,14,966 women and 10 transgender.