Nishikant Khajuria
CHHAN LAL DIN (KATHUA), Apr 17: Unprecedented enthusiasm among voters of all age groups was evident everywhere as Kathua-Udhampur-Doda Parliamentary seat which went for polling today.
Even as the voting began at the schedule time of 7 am people had started pouring in around 6 am in the wee hours at this polling station near the zero line with the neighbouring Pakistan.
Eagerness among the electorates for exercising their democratic right could be gauged from the fact that by 12 noon, more than 68 percent voters in one of the two polling booths here had cast their vote. Out of total 563 electorates, 383 of them, including 183 females and 200 males had cast their vote in the morning hours. In the second polling booth at this centre, 194 males and 179 females out of total 698 electorates, had cast their vote by that time while a number of voters were still in queue waiting for their turn to exercise their franchise.
A youth, who was casting his vote for the first time, had also brought his grand uncle carrying on shoulders to the polling station for ensuring that the latter could not miss the vote.
The story of enthusiasm was not limited to one or two polling stations but everywhere as long queues of electorates were witnessed since early morning telling spirit of the people in exercising their democratic rights.
Young Satpal, who was waiting in a serpentine queue for his turn in front of the polling booth in village Harichak of Hiranagar tehsil, had especially come from his workplace in Jalandhar in neighbouring Punjab to cast the vote. “No one forced me to come home exclusively for casting vote but I decided on my own that one must participate in this grand exercise for formation of Government,” he told the Excelsior.
“As a citizen, we have performed our duty by casting the vote and the rest depends upon fate of candidates,” said Haji Rehman Ali of Tamdehpur while emerging out of a polling booth in Harichak.
It was not only young voters or first timers who were enthusiastic to exercise their franchise but electorates of all age groups, including elderly persons as well as women.
Octogenarian Luder Mani walked more than a kilometer to cast his vote at Jatwal notwithstanding his ill health and suffering from asthma. Even after casting his vote in the early morning, elderly Rattan Chand was still making rounds near the polling station at Chadwal till afternoon evincing keen interest in the voter turnout. “No electorate seems missing this opportunity (voting) except dead persons in the voter list,” he said while adding that he never witnessed such an enthusiasm among electorates.
While everyone was keen to cast his vote, some people in border villages Paharpur, Haripur Senia, Kishnapur, Medha etc alleged that they were deprived of their democratic right as concerned election authorities intentionally deleted their names from the voter list.
“I had cast my vote in last Assembly as well as Parliament elections but this time my name was deleted from the electoral roll for the reason best known to the officials dealing with the same,” lamented Lekh Raj while pointing out a political conspiracy behind deletion of the names.
“However, we will not miss the bus again and instead of approaching BLO (Booth Level Officer), we have decided to fill up the form on our own and get the name included in voter list for forthcoming Assembly elections,” quipped another village.
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