Eager to continue to deepen and strengthen our cooperation with our partners in India, says top US official

He made the remark ahead of the first phase of the Lok Sabha election on Friday.

Patel told reporters: " I’m not aware of the United States sending any observers. We generally don’t in the case of advanced democracies like in the case of India. "

He said, "We, of course, are eager to continue to deepen and strengthen our cooperation with our partners in India, and we’re just going to let the election play out. I don’t have any assessment or comment to offer on that."

Voters' turnout in the first phase of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, projected by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a milestone to 2047 and the Opposition as a battle for democracy's survival, was 60.03 percent on Friday as polling was held in 102 seats across 21 states and Union Territories.

The first phase of polls was held on all seats of Tamil Nadu (39), Rajasthan (12), Uttar Pradesh (8), Madhya Pradesh (6), Uttarakhand (5), Arunachal Pradesh (2), Meghalaya (2), Andaman and Nicobar Islands (1), Mizoram (1), Nagaland (1), Puducherry (1), Sikkim (1) and Lakshadweep (1).

Besides, five seats each from Assam and Maharashtra, four from Bihar, three from West Bengal, two in Manipur, and one each from Tripura, Jammu and Kashmir, and Chhattisgarh went for polling in the first of the 7-phase general elections.

Four states including Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, will also pick new assemblies alongside this Lok Sabha election. Of these, Arunachal Pradesh (60 seats) and Sikkim (32) have already cast their votes.

At 7 pm, the recorded voting turnout was 60.03 percent. Tamil Nadu recorded 63.2 percent turnout, Rajasthan 50.3 percent, Uttar Pradesh 57.5 percent, and Madhya Pradesh 63.3 percent. As for the state polls, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh recorded 67.5 and 64.7 percent turnout, respectively.