India’s Gujarat polls: First phase voting begins
Voting began today in the high-profile legislative assembly elections in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state, where ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is seeking to extend its 27-year uninterrupted rule.
Today's first round of the two-phased polling will cover 89 out of the 182 constituencies across 19 districts of Saurashtra-Kutch region and southern parts of the state to decide the fate of 788 candidates, reports our New Delhi correspondent.
Voting is being held across 14,382 polling stations, of which 3,311 are in urban and 11,071 in rural areas, the office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said.
Live webcasting is being done from 13,065 polling stations to keep a close eye on the fairness of the polling process, it said.
Out of a total 4,91,35,400 voters in Gujarat, 2,39,76,670 are eligible to cast their votes in the first phase, the state CEO's office said.
Poling in the second and final phase in remaining 93 seats will be held on December 5 and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 8.
The BJP, which has ruled Gujarat for 27 years, is trying to retain power in the state for the seventh term in a row. If it succeeds, it will equal the record of the Left Front government which won the West Bengal elections for seven consecutive terms from 1977 to 2011.
This time, the BJP faces challenge not only from its traditional rival Congress but also the new poll entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), led by Arvind Kejriwal, which has tried to position itself as the main challenger of the saffron party.
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