E-Paper
Lok Sabha elections 2019: 64.09% vote in Palghar; 49.95% Thane steps out
In several areas, including Patlipada, Luois Wadi, Vartak Nagar, Manisha Nagar and Mumbra, voters had to spend hours in the queues owing to EVM malfunctioning. At the Jari Mari School in Kalyan (East), the voting began almost an hour later.
Despite their efforts, Thane saw only 49.95% turnout in the Lok Sabha elections on Monday. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the turnout was marginally better at 50.27%.
While Kalyan saw 44.27% turnout, in Bhiwandi it was 53.68%.
Palghar, meanwhile, saw a 64.09% voter turnout, said Brijkishore Zavar, district information officer (DIO), Palghar.
“The turnout in rural areas was much better than in urban areas. Bhiwandi rural had the highest turnout, followed by Murbad and Shahpur. In the Kalyan constituency, the highest voter turnout [46.5%] was recorded in Kalyan Rural,” the office added.
Voting began late in most polling booths, as the mock poll took a lot of time. The turnout across the district till 9am was a mere six per cent.
An officer from the Thane district election commission said, “A lot of people were in queue. Polling had to go on in some places till late.”
In several areas, including Patlipada, Luois Wadi, Vartak Nagar, Manisha Nagar and Mumbra, voters had to spend hours in the queues owing to EVM malfunctioning. At the Jari Mari School in Kalyan (East), the voting began almost an hour later.
Many left the booths mid-way. Amit Surve, 38, resident of Kalyan East said, “Although I reached the polling booth at 7am, I was stuck in the queue for an hour. As the line was not moving and I was getting late for an appointment, I had to leave and couldn’t vote.”
While some weren’t able to vote because of delays, others found their names missing from the electoral list. Madhuri Patil, 19, Dombivli resident, said, “I was excited to vote for the first time. But when I reached the booth, I saw that there was a different name next to my photo. The election officials asked me to wait, but after not getting any help for more than an hour, I decided to leave.”
Meanwhile, it was not a smooth ride for polling officials either – even though they had to report to duty on the eve of election day, several officers complained that they were not given food and water.
