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Voting for the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections has begun in 21 states and UTs -- Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu and Kashmir, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry.
Over 16.63 crore voters, including 8.4 crore men and 8.23 crore women, will cast their vote across 1.87 lakh polling stations. Voting bean at 7 am and will end at 6 pm.
The elections to the five seats in Jammu and Kashmir will be held across five phases almost five years to the abrogation of Article 370. Among the prominent candidates in the first phase are Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Bhupendra Yadav, Kiren Rijiju, Sanjeev Baliyan, Jitendra Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal and Sarbananda Sonowal. Also in the fray are Congress's Gaurav Gogoi, DMK's Kanimozhi as well as BJP's Tamil Nadu chief K Annamalai.
While the BJP-led National Democratic alliance (NDA) under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a stronger majority, the opposition INDIA bloc are hoping for a rebound. In 2019, the UPA had won 45 of the 102 seats at stake on Friday and the NDA 41. Six of these seats have been redrawn as part of the delimitation exercise.
The general elections to elect 543 members of the 18th Lok Sabha will be held in seven phases, from April 19 to June 1. The results will be announced on June 4.
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