Delhi votes in high-stakes civic polls for greater control

In the high-stakes polls for greater control in the national capital, Kejriwal’s AAP is looking to wrest power from the BJP which is eyeing its fourth consecutive tenure at the civic body

Voting for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) election began at 8 am on Sunday.

In the high-stakes polls for greater control in the national capital, Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is looking to wrest power from the BJP which is eyeing its fourth consecutive tenure at the civic body.

The Congress, which has suffered a back-toback drubbing in the national capital since 2015 in parliamentary, assembly, and municipal corporations polls, will try to win back some ground.

Kejriwal appealed to residents of the national capital to elect, and an honest and performing administration in the civic polls.

Congress leader Ajay Maken on Sunday cast his vote at a polling booth in Rajouri Garden for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections and urged people to see the candidates and vote accordingly.

He was accompanied by his wife Radhika Maken at the polling booth.

The names of 450 voters in Subhash Mohalla ward in the national capital have been deleted from the voters’ list because they support the BJP, claimed party MP Manoj Tiwari on Sunday and demanded cancellation of the polls and re-election in the ward.

Speaking to reporters at the Yamuna Vihar polling booth in Subhash Mohalla ward, the BJP MP alleged this was a conspiracy by the Delhi government.

Childcare facilities, selfie kiosks, lounges, and candies greeted voters at pink booths and model polling stations decked up to provide a relaxed voting experience in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls on Sunday.

Polling for 250 wards began at 8 am and will continued till 5:30 pm. Votes will be counted on Dec.7.

The Delhi State Election Commission (SEC) has set up 68 pink booths and as many model polling stations.

Angry and frustrated voters have alleged gross mismanagement in the conduct of polls for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

Several voters at a polling booth in West Patel Nagar claimed they have been roaming for hours in search of the booth where they were supposed to cast their vote, only to be refused and guided to another room.

“I have been roaming with my child for over an hour, but still not geting a booth to vote. I am being directed to different booths. My wife cast her vote, but I couldn’t. No one knows where to vote,” says Kalu Ram, a voter.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission (EC) of India has raised concerns over the low turnout recorded in the first phase of Gujarat assembly elections.

The first phase of voting for 89 seats was held on Dec.1 with an average turnout of 63.31% compared to the 66.79% recorded in 2017, around the same time.

“Major cities/ urban areas of Gujarat have not only recorded a decline in voting percentage as compared to 2017 elections but have also voted much less than the state average of 63.3%,” a release from the ECI read.

Chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar expressed concerns over the turnout and urged the voters to come out in large numbers during the second phase of the polls, scheduled on Monday. The Election Commission, however, noted that the voting percentage had increased in many constituencies but the average voter turnout figure could have supposedly been affected by “urban apathy.”

“The possibility of surpassing 2017 voting percentage now lies in their increased participation only, “the ECI stated.

“Also, average turnout in important urban areas is lower than the turnout in rural constituencies... for example, in Rajkot, there is a decline in all the urban assembly constituencies,” the ECI said.

Gujarat chief electoral officer P Bharti also requested the urban voters to participate in the voting. “I request the urban area voters to leave all other works for a while and please participate in the voting on Monday.

“During the first phase, many voters could not cast their votes because instead of showing valid documents like the voter ID, EPIC card and other ECI approved documents, they came to the polling booths with the voter slips, which is only for information purposes,” Bharti said.