Netas gave speeches, people have spoken

The voter ID is much more powerful than IED (improvised explosive devices), Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in Ahmedabad on Tuesday after casting his vote. Stating that the 21st century belongs to them, he urged first-time voters to resolve to ensure 100% voting to help form a decisive government. "The weapon of terror is IED and the weapon of democracy is voter ID. I believe the power of voter ID is much more than the power of IED," Modi said.

After seeking blessings of his mother Hira Ba, Modi visited his polling booth at Nishan School in Ranip. Before voting, Modi travelled about two kilometres in an open jeep and walked the final 150 metres before casting his vote at Ranip, which falls under the Gandhinagar LS constituency. BJP president Amit Shah is the party’s candidate from Gandhinagar.

Equating the feeling after having cast his vote to how one feels after taking a holy dip during the Kumbh mela, Modi said that voters in the country are mature and know who is best suited to govern the country. "Voters in India are very mature and they know whom to vote for. They can differentiate between milk and water," Modi told the media after casting his vote.

Earlier in the day, Modi paid a visit to his mother’s house at Rayasan on the outskirts of Gandhinagar and sought her blessings before casting his vote. Hira Ba fed him ‘lapsi’, a homemade Gujarati sweet delicacy made of broken wheat, ghee and jaggery that is prepared on auspicious occasions. She also gave him a ‘Mataji ni Chundari’, a sacred cloth that is offered to goddesses. The PM always seeks his mother’s blessings before casting his vote.

Amit Shah’s granddaughter Rudri was the cynosure of all eyes just before Modi cast his vote at Ranip. Accompanied by Shah, Modi was about to enter the polling booth when he met Shah’s granddaughter. He held the little girl in his arms and played with her, tossing her up thrice in the air even as Shah’s family watched on. When Modi posed with the child for the cameras, a loud cheer went up from the thousands of BJP supporters gathered at the venue.

In another development, the Ahmedabad district election officer found no violation of the model code of conduct when Modi cast his vote at Nishan School in Ranip area of the city. A complaint was filed that BJP banners, t-shirts and caps were present in the restricted limits of the polling booth where Modi voted.