Delhi election 2013: Women speak their mind, ignore men Dec 4, 2013 NEW DELHI: In northwest Delhi, Wednesday afternoon was a whirlwind of colour. That is when most of the women from JJ clusters, resettlement and unauthorized colonies stepped out to cast their votes after finishing their household chores. Droves of women, accompanied by their children, visited polling booths in the second half of the day, and proudly claimed that the decision to vote for a particular party was not affected by the choice of men at their homes. All men in the colony voted in the morning but we women got time only now to step out. There was a lot of discussion at home on whom to vote for and we too made an independent decision. That is why we chose to come later, without them, laughed Heera Devi, on her way to a polling station in Bawana with seven of her friends and their daughters. For most women in the Walled City, the election was nothing less than a festival. Wearing bright clothes and high heels, they turned up at polling booths mostly after lunch. A group of six young burqa-clad girls, who stood outside the Shafique Memorial senior secondary school waiting for their turn to vote, said voting gave them a sense of empowerment. My father votes for a particular political party but I have decided to go my own way, said 20-year-old Rafiya Nizami, who is in B(Com) first year. In contrast, several women in Ballimaran said they decided to go with their husbands choice. Shahla Bano, who came to vote with her 70-year-old husband, Abdul Ghalib, said, I am a housewife and dont understand politics. I discussed this with my husband and voted on his advice. Inflation largely set the mood for women voters across the city. Directly affected by rising food prices, especially the recent spike in onion and tomato rates, women said they were looking for change. In Model Town, homemakers said they were voting to express their frustration with inflation. I cannot handle the price rise anymore. I am not sure if the new government will be able to control it but I would still want a change, said Rohini Gupta of Shakti Nagar. Shashi Jain, a 59-year-old voter in Old Seelampur, said, One thing is for certain; inflation has made our lives miserable. Everything has become extremely expensive and the middle class is getting crushed. My vote is against inflation. I want a party that will not only curb rising prices but also make policies that benefit the working middle class, said Jain while refusing to divulge whom she had voted for. For the womenfolk, issues closer to home like water availability were bigger concerns compared to corruption. A Dwarka resident said that she had been a Congress voter but was changing her allegiance since the water problem in her area remained unresolved for years. Thirty-five-year-old Rabiya, a resident of Jogabai Extension in Okhla constituency, complained that the water problem in her area had only worsened over the years. We still buy water from the market. Nothing has changed in the past 16 years. The Congress government has failed to fulfil the most basic need. Despite all the problems, most of my family members will vote for Congress but I have decided to vote for AAP, she said. Womens safety was another important issue. I am voting for BJP because the current government did nothing after the December 16 incident. It has been a very corrupt government, says 23-year- old Ritu at Bawana. First- timer voters come out in force seeking change Activism seems to have come out of college cafeterias and entered the polling booths. In Wednesdays elections, first- time voters not only made their presence felt but also added colour to the democratic exercise with their excitement. Corruption, women security and job opportunities emerged as the main agenda for the first- timers who number more than 4 lakh in the electoral rolls, comprising 3% of the electorate. The young voters appeared confident and had come prepared to exercise their franchise although some seemed in a dilemma. The two issues that influenced my decision are womens safety and corruption. No one is doing anything about the law-and-order situation. Also, corruption needs to go. Its the reason behind the increasing prices, said Meenakshi, 18, a student of Aditi Mahavidyalaya. Meenakshi, who came to vote with classmates Rachna and Poonam, added, All students are very excited about voting. Its the first time we are getting the chance to choose our leader. As another student, Shivani Tewari, 19, came out of the polling station with her finger inked, her parents clicked a photo. Most young voters talked about the need for change. Many confessed that they had voted differently from their parents. At the Mangolpuri polling station, Manish Sindhu, 21 said he had voted for AAP because he supports the underdog. Our family supports BJP but we are voting for AAP, he said, referring to himself and sister Sheetal, We just dont want Congress winning. But another young voter, Rozy, was undecided and ended up going with her parents choice. Honestly, none of the parties are different from each other. But I didnt want to vote for the ruling party, she said. Also seen standing in the voting queue were young sons and daughters of politicians. Said Parminder Singh, son of Congress Gandhi Nagar nominee Arvinder Singh Lovely, Its the first time I am voting and yes, I voted for my father. Its not because he is family but because he has really worked for the constituency, said the 22-year-old budding lawyer. Asked whether he planned to join the family legacy, Singh said he wasnt interested in entering politics. I want to do something different, and make my own way, he added. On the polling booth number 88 at Nagar Palika co-ed senior secondary and primary school in Aurangazeb Lane, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi was also seen interacting with the youth while waiting to cast his vote. Gandhi waited for around half-an-hour before making it to the EVM. I felt good when he asked about me. What is my name? From where do I belong? Where do I live here and things like that, said Brijesh Kumar. However, some first-time voters excitement turned into disappointment when they found that their names were missing from the voters list. I was very keen on voting, said Ritika,19, But my names not on the list. I wanted to contribute to AAPs victory. My mother, who did not vote in the previous two elections, has come out this year to vote for them. Huge turnout leaves Congress, BJP jittery Wednesdays unusually high turnout in the national capital, which is used to complacency when it comes to voter enthusiasm, and an array of exit polls predicting huge gains for new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had the principal players — Congress and BJP - keeping their fingers crossed. The unease is likely to continue till the results are out on December 8. Perhaps for the first time since it got its assembly, Delhi witnessed a proper triangular fight on Wednesday, as opposed to the bipolar Congress versus BJP contest. According to BJP sources, the triangular fight spooked party cadres and got them back to door-to-door campaign that the party had long forsaken. The ruling Congress, which had considered the triangular fight to be to its advantage by splitting the anti-incumbency votes between BJP and AAP, was also jittery about retaining a bastion it had pinned hopes on. The Election Commission predicted that the final voter turnout could be between 70-72%, a record polling that would be read as a vote against the ruling party but which, if read with the buzz around the third party, has created uncertainty of how the results would play out on Sunday. A hung House may not be an impossibility. Congress is genuinely worried that it could be staring at losing power after three terms of chief minister Sheila Dikshit. The chief ministers seat is being watched closely, challenged as she is by AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and former BJP chief Vijender Gupta, in a high-profile triangular contest from the New Delhi constituency. Dikshits comment that she could not predict the outcome only added to the perception that Congress was looking at a negative outcome. Amid the descending gloom, party managers said the turnout among Muslims as well as in its strongholds of slums and unauthorized colonies was positive. We would be surprised in case of an adverse result, a senior leader said. BJP, however, is viewing the big turnout as a vote for change and is happy that Delhi residents have voted against Congress. Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said, Arun Jaitley and I visited at least 25 constituencies today and found that there is a big surge in favour of BJP. Voters are no longer casting uncertain votes. The massive turnout spells a BJP victory. But BJP is also apprehensive about the fact that AAP has turned out as a contender, and that the entire anti- incumbency vote may not come its way. However, with BJP making a late start to its campaign for lack of leadership and infighting in the state unit, the party is looking at its performance as a half full glass. The party had least hopes of winning Delhi, but the possibility of emerging as the single largest party has revived its confidence for the Lok Sabha polls. Inflation is seen as the single- biggest issue in the elections, an issue that reflects more on anti-incumbency against the Centre. The fears are that any reflection of a sweeping mood against Congress would also reflect in the Lok Sabha polls just months later, a fraught prospect for the party that holds all the seven seats in the city. What has added to the apprehension is the turnout of the youth, a segment seen more amenable to the campaign around idealism driven by Arvind Kejriwal as also for change in general. Besides Kejriwal, BJP would be fancying its chances in such a situation. Congress is still hoping that its strong MLAs pull through while the damage done by AAP to BJP in the middle-class segment is more than the votes weaned away from the ruling camp in the slum clusters and among the poor. But it is optimism based on political history. We are hoping for the best but are prepared for the worst, a senior leader said.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 02:01:58 +0000
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