Moments after he voted, Narendra Modi, the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, tweeted a selfie of his ink-stained finger and emerged from a voting booth in Ahmedabad, flashing a cut-out of his party’s lotus symbol and addressed cheering crowds.

“I can say that this time nothing can save the mother-son government…a strong government will come to power,” said Mr. Modi, all dressed in white, promising the defeat of the incumbent Congress which is led by Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.

A police complaint or FIR (First Information Report) has been filed against Mr. Modi on the orders of the powerful Election Commission for his televised actions, which the election body said amounted to campaigning in a polling area, which is banned. “It is evident from Modi’s tone and tenor that he made a political speech. He intended, calculated to influence voting,” the Commission said, adding that it also wants television channels to be penalized.

“It was not an organized press conference,” said BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi, referring to Mr. Modi’s speech. “We respect the Election Commission but Mr. Modi did not violate the code of conduct,” she added.

Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed accused Mr. Modi of being “a serial offender.” His party had earlier objected to the release of the BJP manifesto on April 7, when voting in the nine-phase general election began.

89 parliamentary constituencies voted today. Among them was Vadodara, which is one of the two constituencies that Mr. Modi is running from. The other is Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, which votes on the final day of the election on May 12.

Mr. Modi has been placed by opinion polls as the front-runner for the country’s top job. Under him, the BJP is expected to get the most parliamentary seats, though forecasts differ on whether the party will get more than 272, which will allow it to form the government without bringing in more than the 25 parties that it already has as allies.

Actor-politician Chiranjeevi was censured by voters today when he allegedly tried to jump the queue at a polling station in Andhra Pradesh.

The 58-year-old Congress politician came along with his son, daughter and wife to vote at a polling station in the Khairatabad assembly seat in Hyderabad, and went past a long queue of voters to walk right up to the front.

A voter, Raja Kartik, instantly objected and said, “Do you need special treatment? You may be a union minister, but you are not a senior citizen. You should not jump the queue with your family.”

In pictures, Chiranjeevi was seen trying to mollify the voter, who said he had come all the way from London and had been waiting for more than an hour.
What became even more embarrassing for the actor was that others started clapping and cheering the young man.

Chiranjeevi was forced to walk back and stand in queue. His son Ram Charan Teja, also a film star, left the polling station but returned later to vote.

“I never violate rules. I had just left the queue to see if my name was in voting list,” Chiranjeevi told reporters.

Applauded as the true hero of the hour, the voter, Kartik, said, “I respect him, but he should follow the queue. He is not over 65 or disabled.”

Telangana – which will be carved out of Andhra Pradesh as India’s 29th state on June 2 – is voting today for its 17 parliamentary seats, and for its first state government.
In 2011, Chiranjeevi merged his party with the Congress. His younger brother, Telugu superstar Pawan Kalyan, is planted firmly on the other side – he has pledged the allegiance of his party, the Jana Sena Party to the BJP and to prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

In a sensational acknowledgement by Digvijay Singh, whose wife passed away last year, the Congress leader on Wednesday accepted his relationship with TV anchor Amrita Rai.

Singh’s acknowledgement came a few days after his pictures with Amrita Rai were leaked on the Internet.

On microblogging website Twitter, Digvijay Singh tweeted: I have no hesitation in accepting my relationship with Amrita Rai. She and her husband have already filed a mutual consent divorce case.

In another tweet, he condemned media encroachment in his private life: Once that is decided we would formalise it. But I do condemn encroachment in our private life.

Rai, meanwhile, also confirmed her separation from her husband. She added that she would later marry Digvijay Singh.

“I have separated from my husband and we have filed a mutual consent divorce papers. After which I have decided to marry with Digvijaya Singh.”

Famous for making personal attacks on Congress’ rivals, Singh had taunted Narendra Modi after the BJP’s prime minister hopeful had for the first time publicly acknowledged his wife.

Singh had tweeted, “Narendra Modi accepts his marital status. Can women of this country trust a man who stalks a woman, deprives his wife of her right? Vote against Modi.”

Digvijay Singh’s wife Asha Singh, 58, had passed away on February 27 at a hospital in New Delhi after battling cancer for several years.

His tweet on the day came when polling is underway in seven states and two Union Territories in the seventh phase of 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Here are some of the pics and the video of the couple which have gone viral on the Internet.

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Wednesday hit out at Baba Ramdev, saying that the Election Commission should take strict action against the yoga guru, who “insulted” Dalits.

“Ramdev is a ‘Yadav’, so I don’t think the Uttar Pradesh government will act against him. The EC should take strict action against him. It’s unpardonable what he said,” said Mayawati.

She further said that a few Dalits, who were misguided by the BJP to support it, are now angry over Baba Ramdev’s comment. He should be jailed, added Mayawati. Ramdev created furore when he said in Lucknow on Friday: “He (Rahul Gandhi) goes to Dalits’ houses for honeymoon and picnic. Had he married a Dalit girl, his luck could have clicked and he would have become the prime minister.” The yoga guru had later apologised and said he was misinterpreted.

Mayawati also criticised the Congress leadership, specially its president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi, for not saying a word on the remarks made by Ramdev.

“While the BJP is getting support from Ramdev, one can understand its silence. But why is the Congress mum over Ramdev’s statement though its yuvraj (Rahul Gandhi) was the centre of the caustic remark?” she asked.

The BSP chief further appealed to Dalits and backward classes to cast their vote.

After casting her vote here, the BSP chief said the Dalits and the weaker section earned the right to cast their ballots after a long struggle by BR Ambedkar.

There is no Modi wave in the country, Mayawati added, accusing the media of creating a hype in favour of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

Mayawati said she had been travelling to many parts of the state but found “very little” support for Modi.

Polling for 14 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh began this morning in the fourth phase of elections in the state to decide the fate of 233 candidates, including BJP chief Rajnath Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

This phase covers Lucknow, Rae Bareli, Dhaurahra, Sitapur, Mishrikh, Unnao, Mohanlalganj, Lucknow, Kanpur, Jalaun, Jhansi, Hamirpur, Banda, Fatehpur and Barabanki seats, which lie in Bundelkhand region and parts of central UP.

The rumours were on Wednesday put to rest that Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s wife Jashodaben was on ‘char dham’ pilgrimage after Narendra Modi accepted for the first time that he is married.

Jashodaben, who disappeared ever since Modi accepted her as his wife, exercised her franchise at a polling booth in Mehsana in Gujarat where voting is underway for the seven phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

Jashodaben has vanished from the scene after spotlight turned back on her when the Election Commission displayed Narendra Modi’s nomination form which revealed her name as his wife.

Reports, quoting some members of her family, also claimed that she has been whisked away to an undisclosed location as she anticipated attempts by the national media to reach her.

Jashodaben, 62, who is a highly religious lady and lives a quite life, had sometimes back told her colleagues that she wanted Narendra Modi to acknowledge her once as his wife.

Close relatives of Jashodaben even claim that the lady has been holding fast for some months as a penance to see her husband Modi becoming PM.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday attacked Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi over his ‘Yeh dil maange more’ phrase saying that the Gujarat chief minister is not getting tired of asking for votes from the public.

During an election rally, while interacting with supporters here, Priyanka said, “We have a special connection with you. But he (Modi) is not tired of asking votes from the public.”

“We are here because you love us, otherwise we are nothing without you,” Priyanka said.

She added, “I read in the morning that an Opposition leader said ‘Yeh Dil Mange More’. But Congress just wants your empowerment.”

“We don’t want anything from you, just recognize your strength and be empowered,” Priyanka said to the women supporters.

Earlier, hitting out at critics of Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka today said her brother’s style of politics was ‘liberal’ and not ‘opaque’ and that he worked for the development of every section and looked upon all as equals.

During her marathon roadshow covering 130 kms in Amethi, which goes to polls in a week, Priyanka spoke to voters about the “relationship of love” they had with the Gandhis and cautioned them about the intentions of other candidates “who come only during elections”.

She enumerated the development work carried out in the constituency by her family members, including her father Rajiv Gandhi, and even admitted that more needs to be done.

“His (Rahul’s) politics is not opaque, it is liberal. He looks at all as equals and wants that everyone is benefited and stays united,” she said.

She said that the people have supported her family for generations because they have seen them work for the development of the area.

“Many candidates are coming in your area. There are many types of campaigns going on. There is criticism as well that development work has not been undertaken,” she said.

Facing the heat, jailed Sahara chief Subrata Roy on Wednesday made a plea before the Supreme Court to pass an early order on his petition challenging his detention, saying temperature in the capital has gone up and he is not feeling well in jail.

“The temperature has sore up and the gentleman is not well,” senior advocate Rajiv Dhawan, appearing for Sahara group, told a bench of justices K S Radhakrishnan and J S Khehar.

Roy and the other two directors of the Group have been in judicial custody since March 4 for not abiding by the apex court’s order for depositing Rs. 20,000 crore of investors’ money with SEBI.

Dhawan made his submission at the end of court’s proceedings in a contempt case against a person who had thrown ink at Roy when he was brought to the apex court on March 4.

The court granted four weeks time to the alleged contemnor Manoj Sharma to file his response in the case in which it had taken suo motu cognisance.

The Supreme Court had on April 21 reserved its order on Roy’s petition challenging its decision to send him to jail in the case relating to non-refund of investors money.

It had also agreed to consider Sahara’s proposal for paying Rs. 10,000 crore for getting bail to its chief Subrata Roy and two directors who are in Tihar jail in judicial custody since March 4.

In its new proposal, Sahara group had assured the court that it will pay Rs. 3,000 crore within three-four working days and another Rs. 2,000 crore in cash by May 30.

It also submitted that they would furnish a bank guarantee of another Rs. 5,000 crore on or before June 20.

The apex court had imposed a condition that Roy will be freed on bail only if he pays Rs. 10,000 crore out of which Rs. 5,000 crore has to be in bank guarantee and rest Rs. 5,000 crore in cash.

Nine persons miraculously survived on Monday even after their speeding car plunged into a 50-feet deep gorge.

The incident happened when they were crossing a bridge, few metres ahead of Gadi Cantt. The person on the wheels lost control and the speeding car fell into the gorge.

The students, all studying B.Tech in Dehradun’s Petroleum University, had decided to go for a picnic to Mussoorie on one of their friend’s birthday. They started their road journey at 1:00 am on Monday.

On their way, the driver lost control on the car after which it plunged into a deep gorge. Their screams for help woke up the residents of the area. They called for an ambulance that took all of them to nearby Synergy hospital.

While six of them suffered minor injuries and have been discharged from the hospital, the condition of three of the students is said to be critical and are currently in the ICU.

Meanwhile, police who suspect it was a case of drunken driving, has not shown a keen interest in investigating the case. They have still not tried to know the students’ background.

Also, the hospital authorities didn’t let anybody meet the students and also refused to divulge any details about them.

A woman and her paramour were arrested in Chennai on Wednesday after she admitted to killing her husband some four years ago along with her lover in a Tamil television reality show, police said.

Narrating the murder during the show, Babykala said she and her lover Gowrisankar covered the face of her husband Radhakrishnan, with a plastic cover and suffocated him to death on July 17, 2010.

The victim was in an inebriated state and was in no position to resist. The duo then told relatives that Radhakrishnan had died of “heart attack” and the body was cremated.

However, the law caught with Babykala when her mother-in-law saw the television show and lodged a complaint. Police said Babykala volunteered to spill the beans in the TV show as her lover had decided to marry another woman “betraying” her.