Assam’s Barak valley voters boycott voting demanding better facility
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Guwahati: Even as Assam witnessed a polling percentage of 75 % in the three constituencies in Karimganj, Silchar and Autonomous District constituencies, a section of people boycotted the poll as a sign to express their displeasure towards the political parties. Meet the people of Udharbond area of Silchar constituency who have boycotted the voting on Saturday as they are not satisfied with the approach of the government or the representatives towards their plight.
For Salimuddin, though he knows that voting is their democratic right it can change the rulers of the country, it’s not enough to convince him to vote.
“It’s enough as we have seen for the last 60 years that nobody is interested on us. Our development is not a concern for any political party whoever was in power during this period. Neither Congress nor BJP did anything for us. We still do not have the road for proper communication even at this age. We are very offended and that’s why we have decided to boycott the process,” an angry Salimuddin said outside Nandapur Lower Primary School where the people of the locality staged a protest shouting anti-government slogans.
Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) veteran leader Kabindra Purkayastha is the sitting MP here. Besides another senior Congressman and former minister Sontosh Mohan Dev was also at the helm for number of times.
This time Kabindra Purkayastha is fighting to regain the seat with Sshmita Dev who is the daughter of Sontosh Mohan Dev. After casting his vote Purkayastha has slammed the Congress for the lack of development. “I did my best. I had an opportunity to be a minister for just 13 months and that period is not enough to bring a change,” he told reporter outside the polling booth.
But it has no impact on the common people who have been the victim of indifference attitude of the public representatives. “We people have been making them the winners but they just forget us once they reach Delhi. We still do not have proper education system and health facilities for our kids when the other side of the country is shining. We want to ask why nobody is concerned with our plight?” said another voter Vivek Das, a retired school teacher.
So, this way the people of this locality observed the day expressing their anger against the public representatives.
However, the electoral fate of 37 contestants, including three sitting MPs and an MLA were sealed in EVMS. Among the contestants were sitting Congress MPs of Karimganj and Autonomous Districts Lalit Mohan Suklabaidya and Biren Singh Ingti respectively, Silchar's sitting BJP MP and former Union Minister Kabindra Purukayastha, besides Sushmita Dev, Congress MLA from Silchar and daughter of former Union Minister Santosh Mohan Dev.
EVMs malfunctioned in the Autonomous District and Karimganj constituencies, but were replaced and voting continued uninterrupted, the sources said. The last phase of the polls would be held on April 24 for the remaining six Lok Sabha seats of Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Gauhati, Mangaldoi and Nagaon.
Similarly, another section of deprived voters might take the similar step in Barpeta who have been the victims of river erosion and flood.
On Saturday, in the East Tripura parliamentary seat in the Left Front ruled state, there were 12 candidates in the fray including CPI(M)'s Jitendra Chowdhury, who is the state industries minister, Congress' Sachitra Debbarma, an educationist, BJP's Parkshit Debbarma, an ex-Armyman, and Trinamool Congress leader Bhriguram Reang.
The CPI(M) had won the seat 11 out of 15 times between 1952 and 2009 and consecutively since 1996.
The first phase of the elections in the Tripura West constituency was held on April 7.