Bengaluru, 27 April (HS): Bengalureans continue to remain indifferent to the general elections by preferring to forget their duty to vote as evinced on Friday 26 April. This stance, by and large, has continued to remain so and also sadly for decades.

Second-class polling in the first-class city: S Suresh Kumar, former BJP Minister and Rajajinagar MLA laments over the sad development. He also relents at the predicament as 'Second-class polling in the first-class city' and claims to humbly receive the 'commemorative letter' and puts forth the following opinion:

1. Pleaded for polling days several times: Maybe, I pleaded with the election commission against having the polling days on Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday. If Friday is the polling day, it will also be declared as a holiday thereby tempting many people to utilize the same as a long weekend for personal leisure and pleasure. It is quite natural as well.

2. Need for a sub booth: Among some polling booths, for instance, the polling booth 99 of Kamakshipalya Ward office in Rajajinagar Assembly constituency, the number of voters is 1424. At places like these, the polling process was slow and as a result, one could see long queues. Looking at them many voters went back without voting. This could have been avoided by having a sub-booth.

Dull polling to keep continuing: Another instance of our constituency was that our workers were not able to reach the polling-related slips to about 50,000 people. Many people have passed away and many more who lived in rented houses have left to their own/rented houses. But their names continue to remain on the voters' list. Although our workers did their best to reach out to them they were not successful. As long as the voters' list is properly scrutinized, the complaint of poor voting is also bound to continue.

3. My vote in three places: A voter was contacted and requested to come and vote as his vote was in our constituency. On the other hand, that gentleman opined-My vote is there in three other places; But, I like the doctor candidate of Bengaluru Rural constituency, and am voting there.

As long as voter ID is not linked with Aadhar the discrepancy of voters' names appearing in multiple constituencies will keep continuing and also hampering on the polling outcome.

4. People will bond with the candidates in some way or the other and this relation will eventually increase the poll percentage.

As reported our Rajajinagar constituency has registered 51.11 percent polling. Taking into consideration the number of people on the voters' list and the number of people who have expired or moved out of the constituency, the polling percentage is around 75 per cent. By these parameters, I am hopeful of BJP getting a lead of more than 40,000 votes.

Hindusthan Samachar/Manohar Yadavatti