Undeterred by the intense heatwave which gripped the national Capital on Sunday afternoon, thousands of youth voters were seen standing in queue to cast their votes.
With heavy police presence all around, the people started pouring in at the concerned booths from as early as 7 in the morning. However, in the first half, polling booths in areas of Rajinder Nagar and Rajouri Garden saw a comparatively less number of people who came to vote.
Although people from walks of life thronged the polling booths in their respective areas, it was a sight to behold as the elderly citizens came out in large numbers in the areas of West Delhi.
large number of women, students and working professionals constituted the total voters in West Delhi who turned out on Sunday.
Rameshwari Devi, a 62-year-old woman and a resident of Widhwa colony in Punjabi Bagh said, “I came to vote because I wanted to exercise my right. All the problems such as bad roads, poor quality of water affect us and these can only be tackled only though the timely intervention of the Municipal corporations.”
Although a total of 1,141 people had cast their votes at the polling booth at R block of New Rajinder Nagar area till afternoon, Rajouri Garden which had voted for the Assembly seat on April 9, saw a sparse turnout of voters.
Isha Taneja, a homeopathic doctor came with her family to cast her vote at the Rajouri Garden polling station. “lack of parking space, poor drainage system, and water shortage are some of the major problems that we face in our area. All we want is whichever party comes to power in the Municipal Corporation, they must address our woes” she said when asked to spell out the problems faced by citizens like her.
Reena, a resident of West Punjabi Bagh said, “Cleanliness is a major issue. With the monsoon to set in Delhi in another two months, broken sewer pipes become a big problem as a lot of sewage comes out on the road.”
Ashok Kumar, another voter said, “The mood here is divided. While the young voters support the Congress party, votes of the elderly who had been living in the area for more than 20 to 30 years, appear to have voted for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).”
In the scorching heat, 72-year-old Krishna Khanduja, a resident of Shivaji Park visited the polling booth at the Government Senior Secondary school in West Punjabi Bagh. “I came to vote for the party which not only has a strong hold in the Center but which also swept through the recent elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Roshan lal Karpuria, another senior citizen said, “We have seen the work of all parties. The problem of encroachment and poor sanitation has plagued us for a long time. By exercising my vote, I have selected the party which will definitely bring some relief.”
large sections of voters in West Delhi expressed that they have faith in the BJP. “I think we should give BJP another chance to perform. With new candidates and a new face heading the BJP unit, I believe that the BJP will certainly address the local issues,” said Poonam, a house wife.