Itanagar, Apr 19 (Reporter) Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lt General (Retd) KT Parnaik, who along with his better half Anagha Parnaik cast their vote in Itanagar on Friday, called upon the state's electorate to exercise their adult franchise to make the democracy 'success'. Arunachal Pradesh votes to elect two members of the 18th Lok Sabha seats and the 60-member State Legislative Assembly. Polling started at 7 am in the morning and will continue till 5 pm. "I have voted as per the constitutional privilege that I have. I appeal to all the voters of Arunachal Pradesh to exercise their franchise and make our democracy success" the Governor told the waiting media persons after casting his vote at the P-Sector polling booth here. Appreciating the people who turned up in large numbers for voting, Parnaik said that the wholehearted participation of the voters reflects their consciousness and absolute trust in the democratic process in the State. He exuded hope that voter turnout will be huge and peaceful throughout Arunachal Pradesh. Chief Minister Pema Khandu, who cast his vote at his hometown Tawang, appealed to the electors to vote in large numbers to 'enrich democracy'. "As Arunachal Pradesh votes today to elect representatives for the eighth State Legislative Assembly and 18th Lok Sabha, I appeal to all eligible voters to exercise their franchise in large numbers. "Let us overwhelmingly participate in this vibrant festival to enrich democracy. I also call upon the youth and first-time voters to take part in the elections", Khandu wrote on microblogging site X soon after excercising his franchise. In another post, Khandu said, every vote matters to further strengthen the democracy! Today, the 2024 Lok Sabha election begin, as 102 seats across 21 States and Union Territories go to polls. "I appeal to all eligible electorate in these constituencies to cast their votes in large numbers. Let us overwhelmingly participate in this festival of democracy," he said. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, also the contesting candidate from the Arunachal West parliamentary constituency, has exercised his voting rights at Nafra under West Kameng district. Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein cast his vote in his constituency Chowkham in Namsai district, while State's Chief Electoral Officer Pawan Kumar Sain exercised his voting right at a polling station in the Govt Secondary School building, P-sector, Itanagar. As per the latest update, 38 per cent voting was registered till 1 pm. No reports of any untoward incident related to the elections were reported from any pocket of the State so far, a senior officer at the Nirvachan Bhawan here said...////...