UPDATE - Penultimate phase of Indian general elections ends

ADDS DETAILS OF VOTER TURNOUT, CHANGES DECK; EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Ahmad Adil

NEW DELHI (AA) – India on Saturday completed voting in six of its seven-phase general elections as millions cast ballot for another 58 parliamentary seats. The first five phases were held on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13 and May 20.

The last phase of polling for the remaining 57 parliamentary constituencies is scheduled for June 1, and the counting of votes will take place on June 4. The voter turnout in the penultimate phase was recorded as 59.06%, the election commission said.

In spite of hot weather in certain parts of the country, voters were undeterred in their enthusiasm as they were seen queuing up patiently to cast their votes across the country, the commission said.

After Saturday's polling, voters have cast ballots for 486 of 543 parliamentary seats.

The Election commission also released the absolute number of voters for all completed phases, saying it noted “the pattern of false narratives and mischievous design to vitiate electoral process.”

According to the commission, phase one recorded 66.14% turnout, the second phase 66.71%, third 65.68%, while fourth and fifth phases witnessed 69.16% and 62.20% voter turnout, respectively.

The election is primarily a battle between the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the opposition alliance called INDIA, headed by the Indian National Congress.

India is the world's most populous country with 1.4 billion people, and as many as 970 million of them were registered to vote.