Waiting for voters on a hot Sunday

By Ashish Mishra

New Delhi, April 9 (IANS) It was a dull poll afternoon on Sunday as the April sun blazed above with voters in Delhi's Rajouri Garden assembly constituency preferring to stay indoors rather than queue up to exercise their democratic right.

But there were a few who braved the heat to came out and vote at near-empty polling stations in the afternoon.

Grey-turbaned, 80-year-old Kartar Singh walked to the polling booth with the support of a stick along with his wife Manpreet Kaur, 70. The elderly couple were accompanied by their grandson Happy Singh, in his mid-20s.

"I chose the afternoon because I knew the crowd will be less. People generally do not come to vote at this odd time. Weather has never been an issue for me when it comes to elect a leader for the development of our area," Kartar Singh told IANS at the F-block polling station.

The west Delhi constituency is witnessing a triangular constest between Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) Harjeet Singh, Congress' Meenakshi Chandela and Bharatiya Janata Party's Manjinder Singh Sirsa.

The three cast their vote but declined to reveal for whom they had voted.

"Till now, nothing commendable has been done. Encroachment is a big problem in this area. See the condition of our roads. The shops have expanded," he said.

The Rajouri Garden seat fell vacant after AAP's Jarnail Singh resigned to contest the Punjab assembly polls.

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Waiting for voters on a dull afternoon

The crowds were marginally better in the morning than later in the day. As the sun rose in the sky, many polling stations appeared deserted while others did not have more than a dozen voters at any point of time.

At the D, F and J blocks, one could count from a distance the number of voters waiting outside the polling booths.

Nand Kishore, who sells tea in F-Block market, had opened his stall early on Sunday, anticipating a good crowd of voters.

"I wish it were a bit cooler today. People are not coming out because it is too hot. I thought I will make some good money and democracy will also win. But the sun played a spoilsport," he said, sipping tea from a paper glass.

Polling staff at many stations were also feeling lazy -- many were eating and some were taking power naps on their desks.

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A security loophole

Standing beneath a massive tree outside the F-Block polling station, the IANS correspondent observed that security was not too tight.

People were entering the polling station housed in a school building without being checked.

The reporter took a chance and went in without an entry pass that the administration issues for scribes covering voting.

He was not stopped. As he came out, a security man smilingly asked him if he had cast his vote. "Yes, sir," the scribe replied.

(Ashish Mishra can be contacted at ashish.m@ians.in)

(This story has not been edited by Social News XYZ staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)