An estimated 46 percent of voters have exercised their franchise in the second phase of assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh on Friday, according to the Election Commission.

Reports from Baghpat said some Dalits in Chaprauli Assembly constituency were allegedly prevented from exercising their franchise leading to tension in the area.

In Sisauli in Muzaffarnagar district, Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Mahendra Singh Tikait and his supporters had a scuffle with security personnel.

A presiding officer and a polling agent were arrested in Meerut after detection of some irregularities at Kharkhaunda Assembly seat.46

As many as 8,479 polling centres and 15,887 polling booths have been set up and over 18,400 EVMs are being used in this phase.

Besides Central observers, 100 micro-observers were keeping an eye on election process for this phase, officials said.

About 65,000 personnel of paramilitary force have been deployed for the elections.

Seventy-five lakh women are among the voters who are likely to decide the fate of 881 candidates, who are in the fray in this phase, considered as the Jat belt where Rashtriya Lok Dal's Ajit Singh is said to have a hold.

The turnout of voters during the first half of polling in the 58 constituencies going to poll during the second phase of polling in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly poll on Friday, has proved to be higher than the previous round.

"We recorded 21 percent polling at the end of the first five hours at noon," Chief Election Officer A K Bishnoi told rediff.com.

"The corresponding figure in the first phase on April 7 was just about 17 percent," he said.

According to him, "Polling was peaceful and no untoward incident has been reported from anywhere so far."

Prominent among those whose political fortunes will be decided today are Rajbir Singh and Prem Lata Verma, son and daughter-in-law respectively of former chief minister Kalyan Singh.

Rajbir has thrown his hat into the ring from Debai and Prem Lata from Atrauli.

All sensitive constituencies have been identified and special security measures taken to ensure peaceful voting there, officials said.

With PTI Inputs