Indian PM casts vote as 3rd phase of elections underway in India

AHMEDABAD, India -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi cast his vote in Ahmedabad city of western state Gujarat on Tuesday, which saw the third phase of the ongoing parliamentary elections.

Modi cast his vote in the Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency, where the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s President Amit Shah is one of the candidates.

The third phase of the polling of votes in India's 17th general elections is the biggest among all the seven phases. The first two phases took place on April 11 and April 18 respectively, while the last phase is slated to be held on May 19 and results to be announced on May 23.

The day will witness polling of votes in as many as 117 parliamentary constituencies across the country. More than 210,000 polling booths have been set up for ensuring smooth conduct of polls. One polling booth can poll a maximum of 2,000 votes.

Earlier, Modi urged his countrymen to cast their votes in large numbers, saying their vote was "precious" for shaping the nation's direction in the future.

"Urging all those voting in today's third phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections to do so in record numbers. Your vote is precious and will shape the direction our nation takes in the years to come. I'll be voting in Ahmedabad in a short while from now," tweeted Modi on Tuesday morning.

The general elections are being held in seven phases for the 543 constituencies in the lower house of parliament, or the Lok Sabha.