Second round of voting begins in India

Hundreds of thousands of people have started voting in the second phase of India's national election in the country's remote northeast amid tight security.

The election to choose members to the 543-seat Lok Sabha, or House of the People, will be spread over five weeks and run until May 12.

The multi-phase voting kicked off in two small northeastern states of Assam and Tripura on Monday and spread to the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, and Nagaland on Wednesday.

The main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has promised surges in economic growth if it wins the majority, appears to be leading the race to wrest power from the ruling Congress party.

Voters queued outside the polling booths in Itanagar, the capital of the northeastern Arunachal Pradesh state, on Wednesday morning.

A first time voter, Noori, said that she was hoping the elections would result in the formation of a stable government, which would place the nation on a path of development.

"It should be a changed nation, not a changing one, that's why I have come to vote. I have lot of expectations from them, a developed nation. So, that's the reason I am voting for BJP. I am voting for the first time," she said.

Security forces have stepped up safety measures to ensure a safe and fearless environment for voters.

In the past, the strife-torn northeastern region of the country has experienced poll boycotts from fighter groups and there have also been threats against candidates from the outlawed United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).

Source: Lok Sabha Elections 2014

From aljazeera News