Bivek Mathur
JAMMU, Apr 26: Despite proper arrangements being made for senior citizens and voters with disabilities at the Polling Stations to ensure their participation in the electoral exercise, several elderly citizens and PwD voters in Jammu City reported their names had been deleted from the voter list for reasons unclear to them.
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The Booth Level Officers (BLOs) of these Polling Stations claimed this happened due to some confusion at their end and lack of cooperation from voters who didn’t fill in Form 6 to vote from their home through postal ballot facility or through the Saksham App of the ECI.
However, those senior citizens who had filled out Form 6 contended the polling staff’s claim, alleging they (polling staff) didn’t visit them at their homes to ensure their votes were cast. Those who had registered through the Saksham App also claimed their Polling Stations were changed.
At Dhounthli A Polling Station outside Raj Bhawan at Panjtirthi area, 94-year-old Ramnath Kotwal, a resident of Ward number 1, Panjtirthi, turned up for polling around 10:45 am with his granddaughter.
He was provided a wheelchair to reach the Polling Station but was not allowed to cast his vote since his name had been deleted from the voter list.
Confused, the nonagenarian asked the polling staff for the reasons for deleting his name from the voter list but he wasn’t given a valid response.
After some discussion with the polling staff, his granddaughter cast the vote and he (Kotwal) returned without exercising his right to vote.
Upset, Ramnath Kotwal told the Excelsior, “I have been voting for the past 40-50 years. This has never happened with me that my name has been deleted from the voter list. This is shameful for the poll staff.”
75-year-old Pushpa Devi of Ward number 1, House number 25, was another voter at the Polling Station who claimed her name was not in the voter list.
“Ever since I have registered as a voter I have never missed casting my vote. But this year, I am not being allowed to vote. Even more cunning is the silence of the election staff and the political parties’ leaders who are not coming up with a satisfactory response as to why our names have been deleted,” said the elderly woman.
Shobha Singh Jamwal (68) wife of Sarv Dev Singh Jamwal of Panjtirthi also claimed that four members of her family were not allowed to vote because their names had been deleted from the voter list.
At Amphalla Polling Station as well, two voters claimed their names had been deleted from the voter list without proper justification.
The Block Level Officers at Dhounthli A and Amphalla Polling Stations admitted that some confusion prevailed not just at their polling stations but across the Parliamentary Constituency.
“At this stage, I cannot comment as to why the names of the voters had been deleted as there is massive confusion. Things will be clear only after looking into different aspects,” said one of the BLOs.
“This primarily happened due to the deletion of names of those voters who didn’t confirm their identities during door-to-door surveys and camps organized to register senior voters in the last elections,” another BLO said.
He said all efforts were made prior to elections this time as well to ensure that all senior citizens and PwD voters filled in Form 6 to register for voting from their home facility “but some did not cooperate.”
89-year-old Satya Devi of Indira Colony, Janipur, Jammu, however, contended the claims of the BLOs that those senior citizens who had filled Form 6 were facilitated to vote.
“Despite crores of rupees being spent on the SVEEP campaign, which promised home voting facility, I was not facilitated by the polling staff. This shows such a facility existed only in advertisements,” she said.
Satya Devi, who is also a specially-abled voter, claimed that she filled in the details in Form 6 some 7 days prior to polling.
“Despite my wards lodging complaints with the BLOs and other polling staff, nobody turned up to help me,” she regretted.
Despite the problems faced by several senior citizens, many others cast their votes for the development of their region, employment of the youth, and peace in the region.
102-year-old Haji Karamdin was one such voter, who exercised his right to vote at Reasi Polling Station.
Speaking to media persons, he said, “I have been voting ever since I have been registered as a voter. This election, I am voting against the menace of drugs, empowerment of youth through employment avenues, and creating an atmosphere of peace in the UT.”
99-year-old Kamal Singh of Mali Kote, Reasi, was also piggybacked by his relatives to the polling station at Mali Kote, where he exercised his right to vote.
Appreciating the efforts of the administration in arranging the facilities for the elderly citizens, Singh said, “I have voted for the development of my area and I strongly believe that every person should go out and vote to ensure their participation in the democracy.”
Blind from both eyes, Chankar Singh (85) was another resident of Mali Kote, who was the first voter at the Mali Kote Polling Station.
“Voting is our fundamental right. I have never missed to vote. This election as well, I have voted for the development of my area,” he said.
He also appreciated the arrangements made for the PwD voters and senior citizens at the Polling Station.
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