The last phase of the campaign also saw BJP mounting an all-out war on the Election Commission over refusal of permission for Modi to address a public meeting at a spot of his choice in Varanasi.
The Commission rejected all charges of bias levelled by BJP and said its decisions in Varanasi and elsewhere were unanimous. There were no differences in the Commission.
Polling was by and large peaceful in the previous eight phases barring incidents of Maoist violence in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
The country registered a record turnout of voters, surpassing the previous record in 1984, as 66.27 per cent voting was reported in 502 Lok Sabha seats where polling has been conducted in eight phases that began on April 7.
The 2009 elections recorded a 57.94 per cent turnout.
