World's Largest Democracy Heads To The Polls

The process of picking a new prime minister in India started today.

The votes of more than 800 million people are up for grabs, and the campaign has been fierce. By one estimate, $5 billion will be spent on campaigning.

The incumbent Congress party's candidate is Rahul Gandhi, a member of India's influential Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. His main opponent is the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Narendra Modi, who has been trying out some new techniques to woo the voters.

The BBC's Sanjoy Majumder joins Here & Now's Robin Young to discuss the election.

Note: Please subscribe to the Here & Now podcast or use the WBUR mobile app to hear this BBC interview.