DHAKA: India will vote for its next government starting April 7.  Voting will be held on nine days, ending with May 12.  The results will be declared on May 16.

814 million people are eligible to cast their votes -- 100 million more than in the last elections in 2009, NDTV reported.

State elections in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Odisha will be held simultaneously.

The world`s biggest voting exercise pits the BJP`s Narendra Modi  against Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the campaign of the Congress as the party asks voters for a third consecutive term in power.

Opinion polls have forecast that the BJP under Mr Modi will emerge as the largest party.

No single party has won a parliamentary majority since 1989 and the electorate has fractured in successive decades, turning regional leaders into powerful string-pullers.

The anti-corruption Aam Aadmi Party led by Arvind Kejriwal is likely to be seen as an unpredictable element in this year`s polls.

Just over a year since its formation, the party won enough seats in December`s Delhi state elections to take power for just under two months.

DATES OF VOTING
April 7, April 9, April 10, April 12, April 14, April 25, April 30, May 7, May 12.

BDST: 1311 HRS, MAR 05, 2014