Bengaluru: Eddelu Karnataka (Wake Up Karnataka), a civil society collective, launched four citizen helpline numbers on Saturday — two each for the northern and southern states — ahead of the Lok Sabha election results on June 4.
Addressing the press in the city on Saturday, members of the collective noted that citizens can use the helplines to alert them, the media, and an independent legal team to any unethical practices observed during the counting of votes.
For the southern states, the numbers are +91 9741482975 and +91 6366705015. The residents of the northern states can contact +91 9870419280 and +91 7982597191.
Two meetings held at Bengaluru and Delhi recently helped the collective develop a set of resolutions and interventions in the absence of “proper conduct” by the Election Commission of India, to ensure that the counting of votes is free and fair and the transition to whichever government comes to power is peaceful and is a reflection of the “people’s pulse”.
Tara Rao, social and environmental activist, said, “We live in truly historic times; there has never been such unity across the country. There have been several mass civil society organisations that have been very active on the ground. There is a lot of energy on the ground; the forces have changed. We will stand vigil during the counting and we will stand firm and work towards these (resolutions) until we have the mandate we deserve,” she said.
L N Mukundaraj, litterateur, noted that people were becoming more aware of the present conditions in the country. “Democracy has to and will win in these elections, and the Constitution will definitely prevail,” said Mukundaraj.
Social activist and former minister B T Lalitha Naik urged people to keep a close watch on the events unfolding on June 4.
“As citizens, we need to work together to keep any dishonesty that may occur at bay and ensure that our ideals of democracy are upheld,” she said.
J M Veerasangaiah of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha noted that the Indian farmer community has decided to vote against the government that “does not care for its interests”.
“Should those in power hinder the due process of democracy after counting, people shall take to the streets en masse,” he said.