Council polls: Explaining how to vote is also part of campaigning

Hubballi: With more than 8,700 votes becoming invalid out of around 52,000 votes cast by registered graduates in the 2020 elections for the Karnataka West Graduates’ Constituency of the Legislative Council, political parties this time are focusing more on raising better awareness among the voters about the proper method of preferential voting during the polls to be held for this seat on October 23.The Election Commission of India has already announced the calendar of events for the Council’s biennial elections. Both Congress and BJP candidates are engaged in campaigning, which also involves explaining to voters the way of exercising their franchise to elect their representative in the Council through the preferential voting method. Along with efforts to garner more support for them by seeking votes, candidates are also asking voters to ensure that their votes do not go invalid, expecting that more valid votes would help them.Modi govt’s Viksit Bharat messages over WhatsApp must stop immediately: Election Commission of IndiaThe constituency covers Dharwad, Haveri, Gadag and Uttara Kannada districts, with a majority of voters in Hubballi-Dharwad only. BJP has fielded sitting MLC S V Sankanur for the third consecutive time. Mohan Limbikai won this seat in 2008 on a BJP ticket, defeating H K Patil of Congress, and he is the Congress candidate now. The number of graduates registered as voters in this constituency as of now is 90,460.Admitting the need to create awareness among the voters regarding the exact method of casting the vote through ballot paper in Council polls, BJP candidate S V Sankanur stated that he is explaining the method during the campaigning at schools, colleges and other places, and has also asked the party workers to create proper awareness in this regard. “Soon, we will share a video showing the correct method of casting votes in Council elections, so that votes do not go invalid, and all efforts will be made to reduce invalid votes this time,” he added.Meanwhile, Congress candidate Mohan Limbikai has also suggested that party workers should meet voters and inform them about the exact way of exercising their franchise, so that the number of invalid votes would be less.Plea in Supreme Court seeks suspension of CEC Gyanesh Kumar over ‘unilateral’ decisions”Ballot paper for this election will not have the party symbol. Voters have to write 1 in front of the name of a candidate, and can give other preferences to other candidates. If voters write X or 0 or right mark or give 1 to multiple candidates, such votes become invalid. The party workers should meet voters, tell them how to vote, and bring them to polling stations,” Limbikai said in a meeting of Congress workers in Hubballi recently.Expecting the number of voters in the constituency to be 95,000 to one lakh this time, he stated that the constituency has 24 MLAs, including 17 Congress MLAs and seven BJP MLAs, while Yellapur MLA Shivaram Hebbar would support the Congress though he had won on a BJP ticket. Among 128 polling stations, 46 polling stations are in Hubballi-Dharwad alone, he added.Mohan Limbikai, Congress candidate The party workers should inform voters about way of exercising their franchise. Ballot paper for this election will not have the party symbol. Voters have to write 1 in front of the name of a candidate and can give other preferences to other candidates. If voters write X or 0 or right mark or give 1 to multiple candidates such votes become invalid.S V Sankanur, BJP candidate I have been explaining about the proper method of preferential voting during the polls to be held for this seat on October 23. Party workers have also been asked to create proper awareness in this regard. Soon we will share a video showing the correct method of casting votes in Council elections so that votes do not go invalid.

Source: Deccan Herald