Development, democracy dominate debate in India's mammoth election

New Delhi - Nearly a billion Indians will be eligible to start voting Friday in the world's biggest election, in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third term in office.

Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP is pitted against an opposition alliance led by the Congress Party that was formed to put up a united challenge to the powerful leader, who is widely seen as the frontrunner.