Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Around 3500 marriages were solemnized in those parliamentary constituencies where polling took place in the second phase of Lok Sabha election and this factor affected the polling percentage adversely.
Extreme heat is another major reason for the low voting percentage. These two things came to the fore in the informal information collected by the officials of Election Commission.
One of the senior officers of Election Commission said that when a marriage takes place then at least 200 people go to attend it. The marriage factor has taken a huge toll on voting in the second phase of general election.
Looking at the tepid response of voters, authorities are planning to take special steps to ensure voting percentage increases in the third and fourth phases. “We are thinking of announcing to encourage the people to come out of their homes and vote. We will even take the help of garbage trucks to make these announcements,” an EC official said.
Moreover, he added, that officials deployed on poll duty will be asked to assess the voting situation after noon, and if they feel that voting percentage is not satisfactory then they will take steps to mobilize the voters.
Meanwhile, the political parties are also making plans on how to ensure that the voters go to the polling station to vote. While heat was a major factor in the low voter turnout in the first two phases, what is more worrisome is that it would be hotter during the third and fourth phases of polling.
Direction to collectors
Chief Electoral Officer Anupam Rajan instructed collectors that they should organise “Chale Booth Ki Aur” programme at every polling station to ensure a better voting percentage in the next two phases. This campaign will be conducted on May 1 for third phase election and on May 7 in fourth phase.
