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As Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived to cast his vote, a large contingent of youth and children cheered and screamed his name aloud while holding out his hand-made portraits outside the Nishan Higher Secondary School of Ahmedabad on Tuesday.
Gushing over her experience of catching PM Modi up close and gifting him a hand-made portrait, Sia Patel, one of his young admirers, told ANI, "I requested an autograph and he (PM Modi) obliged. I had been waiting for this day. I can't describe the feeling (of catching up with PM Modi) in words. He simply smiled and obliged me with an autograph. I had been waiting for this opportunity to catch him up close since I made his portrait. It was a delightful and memorable experience." Echoing similar sentiments, Devarsh Pandya, who also gifted PM Modi a hand-made sketch, told ANI, "I asked him if he liked the sketch. He said he did and put his signature on it. I made it last night." Another young girl, who also presented a sketch to PM Modi, said, "I made it all by myself. He saw it, asked for a pen and gave me an autograph. I am delighted beyond words." Chinki Trivedi, who was also among the few to have had the opportunity to meet PM Modi, shared her experience saying, "As I walked up to him, he asked the name of my school. I will surely tell my friends about my experience of meeting Amit Dada (Amit Shah) and Narendra Dada (PM Modi)." In another heartfelt moment that didn't escape the lensmen, PM Modi lifted a little one, who was waiting to greet him, and took the child in his arms as loud cheers rang out in the crowd. Amid the bustling and joyous crowd of onlookers, an elderly woman seized the chance to tie a rakhi around PM Modi's wrist. Speaking to reporters in Ahmedabad after casting his vote earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi urged voters to come out in large numbers and get their fingers inked. "Polling for the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections is underway. I appeal to all fellow citizens to come out in large numbers and take part in this festival of democracy. In a democracy, 'MatDaan' is not just a routine exercise. 'Daan' (contribution) is regarded as a sacred act in the country and, in the spirit of public involvement, I urge my fellow citizens to come out and vote. Four more rounds of polling are left after this. As a registered Gujarat voter, this is where I vote. My colleague Amit Bhai is contesting this seat on a BJP ticket. I arrived in the city from Andhra Pradesh last night. From here, I will visit Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana (where he is scheduled to hold campaign events). I wish to thank the voters of Gujarat for participating in this democratic exercise with such enthusiasm," PM Modi said.The polling for 93 Lok Sabha seats across 12 states and Union Territories started at 7 am on Tuesday.The states and UTs polling in Phase 3 include 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). (ANI)
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