Power couple Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia Deshmukh, on Tuesday morning (May 7), arrived at a polling booth in Maharashtra's Latur to cast their votes during the third phase of Lok Sabha elections.
After casting her vote, Genelia told ANI, "This is an important day and I think everyone should cast their votes today." Riteish also urged everyone to step out and cast their vote.
"I came to Latur from Mumbai to cast my vote. Everyone should come out of their houses and cast votes. Today is an important day. Everyone should definitely vote," he said.
Riteish was accompanied by his brother and Maharashtra Congress MLA Dhiraj Deshmukh.
Emphasising the importance of voter participation in elections, Dhiraj said, "Everyone should exercise their right to vote. This is a festival of democracy. I appeal to everyone to vote..." Their mother and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh's wife Vaishali Deshmukh also cast her vote in Latur early Tuesday.
Born on May 26, 1945, in Latur, Vilasrao Deshmukh was a two-time Chief Minister of Maharashtra and a former minister in the UPA government led by Dr. Manmohan Singh. He died on August 14, 2012.
Riteish and his family often visit Latur. Earlier in February, Riteish attended an event in Latur to unveil the statue of his late father and veteran Congressman.
A video of the actor's speech where he was seen bursting into tears was widely shared on social media.
"Tough twelve years have passed since Saheb [Vilasrao Deshmukh] left us. Occasionally, the pain surfaces. He always used to shine, and even now, he shines. This shine never fades. He stayed strong, so that we, his children, feel the need to stand tall. To stand tall not just for ourselves, but for the responsibilities that come with being his children. Today, although he is not physically present, his love for us is evident, and it burns brightly on this stage," Riteish said.
This time NDA has fielded sitting MP Sudhakar Tukaram Shrangare against INDIA Alliance's Kalge Shivaji Bandappa in Latur.
Besides Maharashtra (11), the third phase polling is being held in Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (2), Goa (2), Gujarat (25), Karnataka (14), Madhya Pradesh (8), Uttar Pradesh (10) and West Bengal (4).
