Puducherry elections: BJP's Ramalingam votes, sure of NDA's victory

BJP Puducherry chief VP Ramalingam cast his vote, confident the NDA will return to power. Polling began for the 30-member assembly, with a saree-clad humanoid robot 'Nila' greeting voters and leaders like PM Modi urging a high turnout.

BJP Chief Confident of NDA Win

BJP Puducherry President and Raj Bhavan constituency candidate VP Ramalingam cast his vote at a polling station in Heritage Town on Thursday as voting got underway for the Assembly elections, expressing confidence that the NDA will return to power.

After exercising his franchise, Ramalingam said, "NDA government will definitely come to power once again, because we are giving multiple projects, employment opportunities, infrastructure development."

Polling Begins with Technological Flair

Polling began at 7 am across Puducherry, Keralam and Assam, marking a crucial phase in the electoral cycle. Voters were seen lining up outside polling booths early in the day, reflecting enthusiasm for the democratic process.

Saree-Clad Robot Welcomes Voters

Adding a technological touch to the polling experience, a humanoid robot named "Nila," dressed in a saree, welcomed voters at the VOC Government School polling station. Developed by Robo Mirror, the robot interacted with voters in both English and Tamil.

Kaushik from Robo Mirror explained, "This robot has a name, Nila. This is an event-based robot... It also has a voice feature, and it can talk on its own. She is welcoming the voters here."

National Leaders Urge High Turnout

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to participate in large numbers. In a post on X, he said, "I urge every voter to come out and participate in record numbers... Every vote matters in shaping the future of Puducherry," with a special appeal to youth and women voters.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge also urged voters to exercise their constitutional voting right as voting across 296 seats in Keralam, Assam and Puducherry commenced earlier in the day.

Electoral Snapshot

Puducherry has a total of 10,14,070 eligible voters, including 5,39,125 women, 4,74,788 men, and 157 third gender voters.

Among them, 24,156 are first-time voters aged 18-19, while 6,034 are aged above 85. The elections will decide the composition of the 30-member Legislative Assembly, with counting scheduled for May 4.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)