Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged the voters to exercise their ‘matdaan‘ (voting rights), comparing it with the importance of ‘daan’ (donation) in Indian tradition, saying that the countrymen should vote as much as possible.
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PM Narendra Modi, who voted at Nishan Higher Secondary School in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad, said, “Today is the third phase of voting. There is great importance of ‘Daan’ in our country and in the same spirit, the countrymen should vote as much as possible. 4 rounds of voting are still ahead. As a voter in Gujarat, this is the only place where I vote regularly and Amit Bhai is contesting from here as a Bharatiya Janata Party candidate…”
After coming out of the polling booth, Modi waved to the crowd and showed his inked finger. He also greeted the people and signed autographs. He was also seen sharing a light-hearted moment with a child in the crowd outside the polling booth.
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Modi bowed down to his elder brother Somabhai Patel before entering the polling booth. Union minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah, who is contesting to retain the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, was present when PM Modi reached the polling booth.
Modi is a registered voter from Ranip area. Somabhai Patel lives near Nishan School, which falls under Sabarmati assembly segment of Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency.
Lok Sabha elections phase 3:
Voting for the third of seven-phase India’s 18th general elections began at 7 am on Tuesday in 93 constituencies across 11 states and Union Territories. Some high-profile names in the fray in this phase include union home minister Amit Shah, who is eyeing a second term from Gujarat’s Gandhinagar, union ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia (Guna, Madhya Pradesh), Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar, Gujarat) and Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad, Karnataka).
Overall, as many as 1351 candidates are in the fray from these 93 constituencies, with 17.24 crore people, including 8.39 crore females, eligible to vote.
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The states and union territories where the elections will be held in the phase are Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (2), Goa (2), Gujarat (25), Karnataka (14), Maharashtra (11), Madhya Pradesh (8), Uttar Pradesh (10) and West Bengal (4). The BJP has bagged the Surat seat unopposed.
(With inputs from agencies)
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