Starting young: RWAs to push kids to mock vote

Don't be surprised if you see children below the age of 12, otherwise ineligible to vote, with the indelible ink mark on their little finger on the day of MCD elections.

Don't be surprised if you see children below the age of 12, otherwise ineligible to vote, with the indelible ink mark on their little finger on the day of MCD elections.

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Resident Welfare Associations (RWA) have come up with an idea to allow children below the age of 12 years inside polling booths to increase their awareness levels.

RWAs want them to pretend to vote on machines and get an ink mark to show their awareness about the election process.

"We want children involved in the democratic process. They are potential voters and need to know how elections are conducted. In the future, they'll not only be responsible voters but also influence their family members to make the right choice," said Rajiv Kakria, member of Resident Welfare Association, Greater Kailash-II.

The associations met the State Election Commission (SEC) on Wednesday to discuss the plan and the commission reportedly approved of the idea.

"We met the commissioner and he was excited about the idea. Any social issue taken up by the children has an effective impact. We are quite sure that with this initiative, the voters' turn out will increase," said Pankal Aggarwal of the Joint Delhi RWA Front, an umbrella body of 300 RWAs.

"We welcome the move as this will create awareness amongst residents. We have our own campaign, in which we are involving the kids. So, we don't have any objection if they want to do this. The basic idea should be to raise awareness among residents," said Rakesh Mehta, State Election Commissioner.