Modi's top rivals cast their ballots as election resumes

Two top rivals of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who accuse his government of targeting them in unjustified criminal probes cast their votes in New Delhi on May 25 as the country's six-week general election resumed.

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Mr Modi, 73, remains broadly popular after a decade in office and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is widely expected to win a third term in June after a general election hit by recurrent early summer heatwaves.

But accusations that the BJP has sought to sideline its opponents via the justice system have sparked concerns from United Nations rights chief Volker Turk and rights groups over the general election's fairness.

Mr Rahul Gandhi, the most prominent leader of India's opposition Congress party, cast his ballot at a polling station in New Delhi, where temperatures were forecast to reach 43 deg C.

A son, grandson and greatgrandson of former prime ministers, Mr Gandhi paused after voting to take a photograph with his mother Sonia but did not speak to crowds of reporters.

The scion of a dynasty that dominated Indian politics for decades, he was convicted of criminal libel in 2023 after a complaint by a member of Mr Modi's party.