A Thai girl casts her ballot.(Xinhua)

    BANGKOK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- On Sunday morning, lots of Thais went out of their homes for nearby polling stations to cast ballots for the general election called three years early by Thai caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to defuse mounting political tension.

    Inside the yard of the Economic and Technological Crime Suppression Division on the Sathorn road, an area clustered with high-rises of foreign companies, a makeshift tent was set up to withstand the heat from tropical sunlight. Around the 20-square-meter space, cordons were erected to signal the area is designated only for voting.

    A dozen of Thais were queuing quietly under the tent, waiting to register and getting ballots distributed by staff of the Election Commission. They then stamped on the sheets before casting them into two separate boxes, one for the party, the other for candidates.

    "I am not a supporter of Thaksin, although he has done something good," a 32-year-old bank employee told Xinhua after voting. The man who declined to reveal his name hinted that he had chosen to vote for nobody.

    Earlier, a group of 600 lecturers from 41 universities have urged voters to tick the "no vote" (abstention) box in Sunday's polling aims to end the political turmoil by ousting Thaksin from the office.

    They said the "no vote" could be the most peaceful and most effective way to edge Thaksin from power amid concerns that his return will widen rifts of the country.

    The number of abstained ballots could influence Thaksin's political future because he has pledged not to lead the next government if he obtains less than half of the votes cast Sunday, said political experts.

    Tuk, a company employee, said he voted for Thaksin. "He has steered the country in the right direction. Under his leadership, our economy has grown very strong and healthy," he said.

    Most of the voters drove to the polling station, and some took taxi or through public transportation. The police officer on guard told Xinhua that about 200 Thais had cast the votes since the station was opened at 8 am.

    It is reported that border patrol police have been posted at polling stations and police station nationwide to ensure safety and order. Security has been beefed up in the three southernmost provinces of Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani for fear of unexpected violence during the election.

    Thai voters are casting their ballots at 86,905 polling stations in 400 constituencies of the country. About 45.2 million people are eligible to vote in the kingdom.

    As the third general election held under the kingdom's 1997 Constitution, the Election Commission hoped this time the turn out would be no less than last year's 72 percent.

    Some 941 candidates from 18 parties have registered to vie for the 500-member seats of the lower house of parliament. But 322 disqualified candidates have been barred from running either by the Election Commission or the Supreme court.

    According to constitution, 400 legislators will be elected directly by voters while 100 party-list candidates will be come out in accordance with the proportion of votes each party receives nationwide.

    Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai party is expected to chalk up another thumping majority on the still solid support in the countryside.

    Under the Thaksin government's five-year rule, Thailand has successfully recovered from the financial crisis of 1997 and its economy has maintained sustainable growth rates. Farmers and average civilians have witnessed concrete improvement in their lives benefited from a package of populist measures.

    This undoubtedly contributed to Thai Rak Thai's landslide victory in 2005, in which it swept 377 of the 500 parliament seats, a remarkable increase from the 248 seats won in the 2001 election.

    Simmering criticism of Thaksin ruling broke out in late January following his family selling of its controlling stake in telecom giant Shin Corp. to a Singapore state-owned investment company for 1.9 billion U.S. dollars.

    Thaksin dissolved parliament in February and called snap elections on April 2 in hopes of renewing his mandate and defuse the street protests demanding his resignation over corruption and abuse of power.

    Despite the boycott by three major opposition parties, the 56-year-old Prime Minister was determined to push forward the polls which he styled as a referendum on his rule.

    On the eve of the parliamentary election, Thaksin renewed his call for national reconciliation, saying all the parties must end conflicting ideologies out of respect for the beloved monarch, as Thailand will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the King's ascension to the throne this year.

    The caretaker prime minister reiterated that he would not return to his post if Thai Rak Thai party candidates received less than half of the overall votes.

    With the opposition's boycott, candidates for Thai Rak Thai party are running unopposed in 168 of the total constituencies.

    The People's Network for Elections (P-Net), a well-known independent election watchdog in the country, forecast that since dozens of the unopposed candidates could fail to meet 20 percent minimum votes to record victory, by-elections would definitely be carried on and the first House of Representatives session may not be able to convene within 30 days as required by law.

    Marred by the alleged fraud and illegitimacy by the opposition, the polling is considered highly controversial and feared to trigger greater chaos in a country already plagued by street protest and confrontation over the past two months.

    Analysts say neither the activists nor opposition is likely to bow to the ballot outcome and they would keep up the battle to force Thaksin out of office. The country would not be able to get out of the lingering political limbo for months to come.

    At 9:50 local time, Thaksin arrived at the polling station located at Pimolvit School in 28th constituency in Bangkok. Accompanied by his family members, the embattled prime minister looked relaxed and confident.

    "Let the people decide ... It's time to bring law and order," he said to the crowd, smiling. Enditem