Akshay Kumar turns up to vote after getting Indian citizenship: 'India should vote for what they deem is right'

The fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections has commenced The city of Mumbai has also gone into polling today Many celebrities were seen arriving early in the morning to cast their vote Actor Akshay Kumar was also among the first at his designated polling booth to cast his vote This is his first vote after getting the Indian citizenship last yearAkshay Kumar was granted his citizenship last year on Indian independence The actor who previously held a Canadian citizenship applied for the Indian citizenship amid criticism for not having oneon the occasion of Independence Day 2023 the superstar shared a picture of the document on Instagram that was proof that he is officially an Indian citizen now Sharing the picture on Instagram Akshay wrote Dil aur citizenship dono Hindustani Happy Independence Day Jai Hind In an interview with AajTak he opened up about the decision to renounce his Canadian citizenship ldquoIndia is everything to me Whatever I have earned whatever I have gained is from here And Im fortunate that I get a chance to give back You feel bad when people say things without knowing anythingrdquo he sharedToday after casting his vote speaking to the media he said I want my India to be developed and strong I voted keeping that in mind India should vote for what they deem is rightI think voter turnout will be goodWATCH Actor Akshay Kumar shows the indelible ink mark on his finger after casting his vote at a polling booth in MumbaiHe says I want my India to be developed and strong I voted keeping that in mind India should vote for what they deem is rightI think voterhellip pictwittercommN9C9dlvRDmdash ANI ANI May 20 2024Actor Farhan Akhtar and sister Zoya Akhtar also arrived to cast their votes at Mount Mary Convent High School in Bandra Janhvi Kapoor also arrived in the morning to voteWATCH Maharashtra Actor Farhan Akhtar and Director Zoya Akhtar show their inked fingers after casting their votes at a polling station in MumbaiLokSabhaElections pictwittercomESpxvZNuGNmdash ANI ANI May 20 2024Voting for the fifth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections 2024 began on Monday morning across 49 parliamentary constituencies spread over six states and two Union Territories UTs amid tight security and arrangementsThe voting started at 7 am and will continue until 6 pm with those in line by the closing time still allowed to voteAccording to the Election Commission of India ECI polling for 35 assembly constituencies of the Odisha legislative assembly will also take place simultaneously on MondayAs per the ECI over 895 crore voters including 469 crore males 426 crore females and 5409 thirdgender electors will decide the fate of 695 candidates in the fifth phase of votingThe fifth phase will witness key contests in various constituencies Leaders such as Rahul Gandhi BJP leaders Rajnath Singh Smriti Irani Rajiv Pratap Rudy Piyush Goyal Ujjwal Nikam Karan Bhushan Singh LJP Ramvilas chief Chirag Paswan JKNC chief Omar Abdullah and RJD leader Rohini Acharya are looking for electoral successEight statesUTs going for polls in phase 5 are Bihar Jammu and Kashmir Ladakh Jharkhand Maharashtra Odisha Uttar Pradesh and West BengalCities like Mumbai Thane and Lucknow are going to the polls in this phase which has in the past suffered from urban apathy in votingThe commission especially calls upon these city dwellers to erase the stigma by turning out in higher numbersOf the 49 Lok Sabha seats 14 are from Uttar Pradesh 13 from Maharashtra 7 from West Bengal 5 from Bihar 3 from Jharkhand 5 from Odisha and one each from Jammu and Kashmir and LadakhIn a bid to create a peaceful atmosphere for the electors a total of 2000 flying squads 2105 static surveillance teams 881 video surveillance teams and 502 video viewing teams are keeping surveillance round the clock across the 94732 polling stationsA total of 216 international border check posts and 565 interstate border check posts are keeping a strict vigil on any illicit flow of liquor drugs cash and freebies Strict surveillance has been kept on sea and air routes the ECI saidThe ECI said that the polling stations are ready to welcome the voters with ample shade drinking water ramps toilets and other basic facilities to ensure that polling takes place in a comfortable and secure environmentThe concerned CEOs DEOs and state machinery have been advised to take adequate measures to manage hot weather conditions in areas where it is forecast it addedThe Commission has called upon voters to turn out in greater numbers at polling stations and vote with responsibility and prideUntil now the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 have seen a voter turnout at polling stations of about 6695 per cent Around 451 million people have already voted during the first four phases of the ongoing general elections the ECI addedECI has partnered with a host of prominent figures to appeal to and motivate voters to cast their vote during the ongoing electionsThe remaining phases of the polls will continue until June 1 with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4Polling for 23 states UTs and 379 PCs was completed in a smooth and peaceful manner in the first four phases of the general electionsWith the conclusion of four phases polling for general elections has crossed the halfway mark with polling completed in 23 statesUTs and 379 parliamentary constituenciesPolling is also completed in general elections for the state legislative assemblies of Arunachal Pradesh Sikkim and Andhra Pradesh and the 28 assembly seats of the Odisha State AssemblyThe results of the sevenphase Lok Sabha elections will be announced on June 4with inputs from ANI