JOIN USVoters mainly from Bangalore Central and Bangalore South constituencies faced problems at polling booths and some returned home disappointed without getting inked on their thumb as their names were found missing on the voters’ list.
Confusion over polling booths also led to a lot of frustration among both the voters and the polling officials in several instances.
Some people expressed their ire over officials at the booths insisting on Aadhaar cards. Suresh H G, employee of a private company and a resident of Byatarayanapura, said that at his booth several people were put in a spot when the poll officials insisted on Aadhaar card.
Standing under the scorching sun, 37-year-old Jay David searched for the names of his uncle R Benedict and grandmother Lourd Mary in the voter list at a polling booth in Tasker Town.
However, his efforts turned futile as the polling staff there maintained that his family members cannot exercise their franchise as their names are not listed.
Similarly, Seema B from Shivajinagar was disappointed as her name did not figure in the voter’s list. She said that a family of five members in her neighbourhood also faced the same problem.
At polling booths located at Bangalore South constituency, the situation was no different. Registered voters at Tilak Nagar, BTM Layout, Koramangala, Gowdanpalya, Yarab Nagar and other neighbouring areas faced hassles.
Vijay Chandy, a resident of Koramangala VI Block, maintained that he, along with his wife Usha Chandy, registered themselves at the nearby Palike office on March 14 and even received acknowledgement. However, on Thursday, they were told that their names were not there on the list.
In Bangalore North, Nagamma, 81-year-old resident of Malleswaram, who had a voter ID card, was not allowed to exercise her vote. Pointing towards her ID card, she said: “I got this ID card in 1994 and cast my vote during the last Vidhan Sabha elections. But this time, I was not allowed," she added.
At TC Palya in Bangalore North, voters cribbed about difficulty in locating the polling booths, photo mismatches and names missing from the voter’s list.
Meanwhile, a BBMP official said that people who have registered and received voter ID cards before 2008 are most probably the ones whose names have gone missing.
“This is because during 2007, new areas were added under BBMP, new constituencies were formed and a few wards got shifted to other constituencies. The Election Commission (EC) has restored a few voter ID cards who have applied for fresh applications. But not all have applied for fresh applications hence the problems exist.”