Factory workers to use NOTA option this election

The NOTA option in electronic voting machines has offered a new means of protest to thousands of out-of-work factory workers in Kota, Rajasthan.

The “None Of The Above” (NOTA) option in electronic voting machines (EVMs) has offered a new means of protest to thousands of out-of-work factory workers in Kota, Rajasthan, which is going to the polls on December 1.

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Members of around 1,800 families, who were employed in the Samtel Glass Unit and Samtel Color Unit in Kota, have decided to push for their demands by pressing the NOTA button in the ensuing Assembly elections in the state.

These 1,800 families make up around 9,000 voters in different assembly segments in Kota.

Milan Sharma, the president of Samtel Workers Committee, said that they had been protesting since the units closed down in November last year, but no political party ever extended support to them.

“About 1,800 workers were left without jobs after the closure. The company management did not even pay due salaries worth Rs 40 crore,” he said, adding that neither the ruling or the opposition parties came to their rescue.