Errors persist in voters' list

Names of a few who voted in the Lok Sabha elections held three months ago were found missing. In some cases candidates were denied the right to vote as their identity card did not match with the list.

Cases of missing names were reported in Amarajyothi Nagar, Pantara Palya and Pategara Palya. Congress workers in Pategara Palya alleged that over 200 names were missing in the voters’ list. In Gangondanahalli, Congress workers alleged that names of those belonged to minority communities had been either deleted or spelt wrongly as a ploy to deny them the right to vote.

 Among the five constituencies which went for bypoll, Govindrajnagar recorded the lowest voter turnout. However, in the last three elections the turnout has increased steadily.
In the Assembly elections in 2008, the constituency witnessed a turnout of 42.4 percent. In the Lok Sabha elections three months ago the total turn out was 42.66 pc. This time the high-voltage campaign by both the BJP and the Congress increased the turn out to 48 pc.

Polling in the constituency was peaceful. Barring instances of delay in beginning of polling due to technical problems in EVMs in two booths and complaints of missing names, the day was uneventful in the constituency. Interestingly, voters were seen in long queues in the morning hours. Most of the working class people preferred to vote before they left for their offices. Party workers were seen appealing to voters even at the last minute. Candidates of the both - BJP and Congress - V Somanna and Priya Krishna hovered around the polling stations till the polling ended.

Somanna, who is confident of victory this time said that he did not distribute money to woo voters.

“My workers do not get anything except ‘chitranna’, while Congress supporters are getting cash,” he alleged.