E-Paper
Braving rain, 59% voters exercise their franchise in Shimla MC polls
Of the total 93,920 voters, 53,385 showed up at the polling booths to account for 58.97% during the Shimla MC polls
Braving the inclement weather conditions, 58.66% of voters stepped out to elect the new municipal corporation (MC) in Shimla even as the polling began on a slow note amid showers.
Of the total 49,760 male voters, 29,504 showed up at the polling booths to account for 59.29%. The figure was similar for female voters, with 25,881 of the 44,160, 58.6%, registered voters exercising their franchise.
Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh, along with his wife Kamlesh and two daughters cast their votes at the polling booth at Central Tibetan School, Chotta Shimla. Sukhu, who has remained a three-time councillor from Chotta Shimla ward before he entered Vidhan Sabha from Naduan struck an emotional chord, meeting with the shopkeepers on the way and had tea at the stall right outside the school.
Education minister Rohit Thakur and Neeraj Nayyar Chamba, and legislator Neeraj Nayyar also accompanied him, as did the Congress candidate Surrender Chauhan, a close aide.
“It’s a pleasure that I am casting a vote to a man who used to paste my posters on the wall,” Sukhu said, reminiscing his youthful days. “I used to frequent the shops along with friends.
Former Union Minister Anand Sharma, meanwhile, cast his ballot at his home Bharari ward.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), meanwhile, raised serious questions on the voting by the Congress leaders. “Sukhu too contested elections from Naduan, so why should he cast his vote from Shimla now,” former urban development minister and four time legislator Suresh Bhardwaj said.
BJP also questioned the electronic voting machines (EVM) used in Chotta Shimla ward. Speaking of the same, leader of opposition and former CM Jai Ram Thakur saying, “To win the election at any cost the Congress has now resorted to hooliganism.”
Thakur alleged irregularities at Chotta Shimla and Kangnadhar wards, adding, “I have personally taken up the matter with the state election commissioner and am waiting for his reply.”
BJP’s state president Rajeev Bindal, meanwhile, shared a screenshot of the state election commission’s website purportedly showing a change sequencing of candidates at one of the wards.
Speaking of the polling, Shimla deputy commissioner Aditya Negi, meanwhile, said, “By and large the polling was peaceful, there were no untoward incidents of violence. The rains slowed down the polling in the morning but it picked up by evening.”
There are 102 candidates in the fray. There are 93,920 registered voters across the 34 wards in Shimla.
