Parliamentary elections have begun in India, with six Lok Sabha (Lower House) constituencies in the northeastern states of Assam and Tripura going to the polls on April 7. These elections are unique, as young voters have never before been in such a decisively influential position. This means that after the 2009 elections, more than 100 million new voters have joined the electoral rolls, 23 million of them just 18 or 19.

India is a young and aspirational country. Youth everywhere is full of dreams for the future, huge aspirations and lofty ideals. In comparison with older people, the young are much more idealistic and uncompromising. The all-pervasive corruption pinches everybody, but the young get more exercised over it.

 They are also more prone to take to agitational methods. In an election, they will naturally gravitate toward candidates with a cleaner image.

However, the grim reality is that many political parties have put up candidates who do not enjoy a clean reputation and are facing criminal proceedings in various courts. Young voters, most of all, may be turned off by such candidates.

Voters under 40 are in a position to decisively influence the polling outcome. In six states and federally administered territories, they are more than 60 percent of the total electorate. Save for Goa, Kerala, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu where they are slightly less than 50 percent, in all other states they are a majority of voters.

In view of these hard facts, it's not surprising that the BJP, which leads the main opposition front, the National Democratic Alliance, has put forward Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate. Modi is 20 years younger than Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who is in his early 80s.

This is one of the reasons behind the BJP's assertion that there is a nationwide wave in favor of its candidate, as the young people are feeling enthused by the possibility of a younger prime minister at the helm of the country's affairs in the days to come.

While many would disagree with the BJP's claim about a Modi wave, nobody can doubt the decisive role young voters are going to play.

The ruling Congress party has not declared its prime ministerial candidate, but is widely assumed that if it is in a position to patch up a post-poll alliance with a majority in the next Lok Sabha, young Rahul Gandhi will head it.

Another possible contender, who suddenly emerged in the recent past, happens to be an equally young Arvind Kejriwal whose Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) stunned everybody by bagging the second highest number of seats in the Delhi state assembly elections.

His leaders too have galvanized youth across the country, as his main political plank is transparency in public life and a tireless campaign against corruption. Most of the candidates put up by the AAP are relatively young, and this is cited as a positive factor helping the electoral fortunes of his fledgling party.

No wonder that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has made promises of creating 100 million jobs in the next five years if his party is voted into power for a third consecutive term. Howsoever improbable the promise may be, it has certainly made an impact on the imagination of young voters.

Whether they believe in his intention will become clear by the way they exercise their right to vote.

The BJP was quick to rebut the tall promise by pointing out that the Singh administration failed to manage the economy efficiently, check prices and corruption, and maintain the GDP growth rate.

As both the Congress and the BJP pay mere lip service to end corruption and put up candidates with tainted image and criminal background, young voters may be in a mood to teach them a lesson.

The author is a Delhi-based journalist who writes on politics and culture. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn