All 39 Lok
Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu went to polls in the sixth phase today. In India often elections are festivals –
there are many who do not exercise franchise citing silly reasons. In the city, people will not vote when it
rains, when it is hot, when there is crowd, when violence is apprehended and
more.. in a Democracy, some get elected
by getting less than 25% of the electoral votes – but don’t blame them; don’t
even blame the system – blame the individuals who do not vote………. When there is
very high % of voting, people start suspecting bogus voting. Lot has changed from the days of ballot (when
there were occasions of booth capturing and mass voting by some goons) to the
present day EVM. A number of high-profile candidate’s fortunes are to be
decided ..... The DMK had won 18 seats in the 2009 Lok Sabha election while the
AIADMK, the current ruling party, won only 9 seats. The Congress had bagged 7
seats. Lot is expected to change !!! A total of 845 candidates are in fray of whom only 55 are women.
According to a news report, Election authorities raided and lodged a
police complaint against five companies at an IT park here for functioning on
the day of Lok Sabha polling in Tamil Nadu today in violation of rules and sent
back around 2,000 employees home to enable them to vote. The attitude of the Companies certainly need
condemnation. On the other side, some Private
enterprises in Chennai announced discounts on services and goods to encourage
citizens to go and vote.
Away, Maharashtra
saw low voter turnout while there was enthusiastic voting in Tamil Nadu as
polling was held on 117 Lok Sabha constituencies in 11 states and in the Union
Territory of Puducherry. Firstpost
reports that by and large, Mumbaikars, except those who live in the slums, have
lost the right to express displeasure on TV shows, Facebook, Twitter or
anywhere else, over issues of governance. Their many candle-light vigils and
protest marches can henceforth be conveniently labelled hollow. If at all they
have gripes about the government, about civic administration, they are better
advised to keep the same to themselves. By staying away from polling booths,
they just abdicated their right to criticize any government agency or
institution. And the middles class - the ones with the most number of
complaints and even more angst - are the ones who refused to walk to the poll
booths and exercise their franchise. The poor, on the other hand, are more
dutiful as citizens in a democracy notwithstanding the fact that they are the
most disenfranchised in the society.
Further away, Raj Samadhiyala in Gujarat's Saurashtra was
once known across the country as a zero-crime village where denizens didn't
need to lock their houses. Over the
years, though, it has added several more feathers to its cap. On April 30, all
its 960-odd eligible voters will exercise their franchise. This is a record in
itself, but the real novelty about Raj Samadhiyala lies in the fact that voting
here is mandatory, and violating this unwritten rule attracts a penalty of Rs
500 from the panchayat. If for any reason someone is unable to cast their vote,
they are required to present a valid reason to village elders. The residents of Raj Samadhiyala won't tell
you the party they owe their allegiance to, but there is a tacit affinity
towards Chief Minister Narendra Modi, as he got a strict ban imposed on the
sale and consumption of gutkha. So what, you ask? Well, in this village of
1,700 people, teetotalism is a prized virtue and no one here chews tobacco or
smokes either. Situated 30km from Saurashtra's main city Rajkot, Raj
Samadhiyala is a place that observes a blanket ban on the use of plastic, and
each home has a toilet. The village has its own school, a stadium and a cricket
team that participates in matches across the country.
Daily Mail reports that some 15 years ago, Raj Samadhiyala was like
several other villages of Saurashtra. The metamorphosis began with the election
of a progressive, educated and innovative sarpanch, Hardevsinhji Jadeja, who
worked hard to turn things around. With the use of seismic imaging, he spotted
underground water streams and then implemented a strict water-harvesting
programme. Soon, the village had its own pond with lush green crops throughout
the year. A renaissance of sorts had begun.
Now we have
polling booths situated so close to our home and yet we find reasons for not
walking in....... Valli village is
different~ everyone in this village has a mobile phone, but they have to take a
20-minute boat ride to the nearest town to charge it. Located on an island
around 40km from Anand, Valli village has no power supply, and residents here
depend on the boat ride across lake Kanewal for almost all their basic needs. But, for all the inconvenience, come election
time, each eligible voter of Valli makes it a point to swim across to the
nearest polling booth to register a 100 per cent turnout. This has been the
trend over the past four elections, General and Assembly.
~ and
further away, hundreds of voters of Madhya Pradesh's Gangapur village threatened to boycott April 24 elections to
press their long-pending demands for roads and power in the area. The villagers
have now put up banners all across the village saying: "sadak nahi toh
vote nahi aur bijli nahi toh vote nahi (no road no vote and no electricity no
vote)".
Will continue with one post on ‘compulsory voting’ not here – elsewhere –
downunder
With regards
– S. Sampathkumar.
24.4.2014 @
0700pm.
Due credits to Daily Mail & Firstpost.
