PM Modi urges people to vote in 'record numbers' in 4 states, 1 UT as polling begins

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people, especially the young, to vote as polling began in four states and one Union territory on Tuesday. "Elections are taking place in Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. I request the people in these places to vote in record numbers, particularly the young voters," PM Modi said in a tweet.

Voting is underway for 475 assembly seats across four states of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal and one Union territory of Puducherry. While elections are being conducted in a single phase in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry, Assam will witness the last of its three-phase polls, with which the current election cycle will come to an end in these four regions. West Bengal, which is voting in its third phase, will have five more rounds of elections. Prime Minister Modi held 24 election rallies in the five regions till April 3.

In the state of West Bengal, where the third phase of polling is underway, 31 seats in the fray are witnessing a tight contest between the Mamata Banerjee-led- ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

In Assam, this will be the third and last phase of polling and 40 out of the 126 seats will witness a contest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Congress-led Mahajot.

For Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry, the election cycle will end on Tuesday as polling will be conducted in a single phase. In Tamil Nadu, polling is underway for 234 assembly seats and the contest is between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led alliance and the incumbent All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). In Kerala, voters queued up with polling underway for 140 seats with a fierce fight between the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). In Puducherry, which has 30 assembly constituencies, polling is also underway where the Congress-led government fell due to a spate of resignations leading the Union territory into a political crisis.

The results of all the four states and one Union territory will be announced on May 2.