High stakes, low turnout

Ruchika M Khanna
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, May 19

The total polling percentage in the state fell by close to 5 per cent from 70.89 per cent in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls to 65.77 per cent on Sunday. This indicates that the worst fears of political observers, regarding disconnect between the political parties and their candidates with the voters, have come true.

This has set the alarm bells ringing in political circles, especially among those candidates who are contesting the Lok Sabha elections for the first time. A low voter turnout usually indicates that the fence sitters (voters who are not aligned to

any of the parties) have stayed away. In Punjab's context, these fence sitters are the one's who had given wings to AAP in 2014. With the party now seemingly decimated, these voters could have abstained.

Till 3 pm, the voting percentage in most of the constituencies remained rather low. Across the state, the total polling percentage was 48.74. With just two hours left for the polling, candidates in most constituencies were on the tenterhooks, and they and their supporters immediately started mobilising voters. While some candidates like Ravneet Singh Bittu from Ludhiana took to social media, making appeals to voters to exercise their franchise, reports from Patiala (where Chief Minister's wife Preneet Kaur is the candidate) suggest that the Congress camp sent emissaries to areas in Patiala Rural and Urban segments to urge people to come out and vote.

All through the campaigning, the fact remained that the voters this time were dismayed as both Congress and SAD-BJP failed to give them an agenda that the voters wanted. It would not be a surprise if those who abstained from voting were largely agriculturists, says eminent political analyst Pramod Kumar. "While the farmers have been disillusioned with the NDA for doing little for them, they are equally dismayed with the Congress for not fulfilling its promise of a complete debt waiver. Also, neither Congress nor the Akali-BJP came up with a roadmap to uplift their lot," he reasons.

Observers feel that across India regional parties are now emerging stronger. In 2014, the share of regional parties in the votes polled was 28 per cent, as compared to 61 per cent for the national parties (rest went to independents, other political outfits). In Punjab, it remains to be seen if the national trend is replicated, or an embattled Akali Dal goes down further.