Gujarat Election Phase-2 Live Updates: Polling to begin shortly in Gujarat

Voter enthusiasm would count as much as votes for BJP, Congress and AAP as the battle for Gujarat enters endgame in 93 seats across 14 districts on Monday against the backdrop of a nearly 5% drop in turnout compared to 2017 during the first phase of polling in 89 constituencies. The 2.5 crore-strong electorate tasked with deciding the political fate of 833 candidates in the second phase has had a history of indifference towards elections, particularly in the 23 urban segments spread across Ahmedabad, Vadodara and the Gandhinagar municipal corporations. These 23 seats, which had been the focus of PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah during the last lap of their campaign, had cumulatively recorded 69.3% voting in 2012 that declined to 67% in 2017. Read full story