The world's largest election is underway in 102 areas across 21 states and Union Territories in India. This marks the beginning of voting for the first phase.
During this phase, nine Union Ministers are facing the voters who will seal the formers' fate in the polls. Let's take a closer look at each of them:
Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road and Transport, aims for a third consecutive win from Nagpur's Lok Sabha seat.
Kiren Rijiju, holding positions in Earth Sciences and Food Processing Industries, is running for the Arunachal West seat.
Sarbanada Sonowal, Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, is seeking re-election from Assam's Dibrugarh seat.
Sanjiv Baliyan, serving as the Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, is contesting from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh.
Jitendra Singh, a two-time MP from Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur, is aiming for a third term.
Bhupendra Yadav, a Rajya Sabha MP and Modi cabinet minister, is contesting from the Matsya region in Rajasthan's Alwar district.
Arjun Ram Meghwal, India's Minister of Law and Justice, is seeking votes from the Bikaner constituency in Rajasthan.
Nisith Pramanik, also a Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs, is running for the Cooch Behar seat in West Bengal.
L. Murugan, a Minister of State in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, is contesting from the Nilgiris LS constituency in Tamil Nadu.