95-year-old urges Indians: Fulfil your duty

As voters queued up outside booths for the single-phased polling for the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly began on Friday, 95-year-old Ram Murthi, who also showed up to get his finger inked, exhorted fellow natives to “do their duty and cast their votes”.
Polling for all 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh commenced at 7 am on Friday. A large number of voters turned out to keep their date with democracy.
The voters can cast their ballots until 6 pm, with the exception of Baihar, Lanji, and Parswara assembly seats of Balaghat district and some booths in Mandla and Dindori districts, where voting will be held until 3 pm.
People queued up outside polling stations to exercise their franchise and decide the fates of 2,533 candidates.
“The Election Commission has made good arrangements for senior citizens as well. I came here to cast my vote as I felt I was in good shape and wanted to vote my choice,” he said.
Chahat Singhal, a first-time voter who came to exercise her franchise, also lauded the arrangements at her designated polling booth.
“This is my first vote. Though the polling began at 7 am, I got here at 6 am,” she said.
Nearly 5.59 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise. It includes 2.87 crore male and 2.71 crore women voters.
There are over 5,000 booths run by women and 183 polling stations run by the disabled, officials said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday extended his greetings to first-time voters in Madhya Pradesh where polling is underway for the 230-member Assembly.