Largest MC witnesses lowest voting
While the Faridabad Municipal Corporation recorded 40 per cent voter turnout, the Hathin Municipal Committee in Palwal district registered 80 per cent voting.
Claiming that this was perhaps the lowest percentage since the inception of this oldest and largest civic body in the state, sources in the administration said flow of voters at 1,302 booths set up in 46 wards remained very poor throughout the day.
“Majority of the booths appeared deserted till 12 pm,” said an official on condition of anonymity.
He said the percentage had been just 1.1 per cent in the first two hours of the polling. As it managed to touch only 16.9 per cent at 1.20 pm, the turnout rose by only eight per cent in the next two hours. This went up to 35.8 per cent till 6 pm. As voters who had lined up till 6 pm were allowed to cast their vote even after the deadline, the percentage reached 39.3 per cent by 7 pm.
Jayshree Gaur, a resident of Sector 85, said she found her name missing in the voter list and there was nobody to help her.
Describing poor condition of civic amenities as one of the reasons for low voter turnout, Narender Sirohi, a resident, said the issues of garbage disposal, lack of cleanliness, damaged roads and pollution had perhaps taken a toll on the voting percentage.
Hathin, a small town having 12,685 voters, recorded over 80 per cent turnout. It is claimed that the rural voter base and personal connect of candidates with locals turned out to be a major factor behind high turnout.
Palwal DC Dr Harish Kumar Vashist, who visited several polling booths, said the voting got conducted in a peaceful manner.
