Behind every successful legislator in Punjab, there will be women. Skewed sex ratio in the State notwithstanding, more women came out to vote in 2017 assembly polls than men.
With Punjab recording total 77.37 percent polling, took place on Saturday, a total of 78.14 female voters came out to vote against 76.69 percent of their male counterparts, displaying in the process how empowered they were in real sense.
In all, 21.93 percent voters of ‘third gender’ too exercised their franchise on Saturday. The polling percentage, this time, has seen a little dip against 2012 figure of 78.60 percent.
The stronger emergence of the weaker sex was also noticed during the 2014 lok Saha polls in the state when 71.11 per cent females exercised their franchise as compared to 70.70 percent of their male counterparts.
Notwithstanding improvement in the state’s sex ratio from 874 in 2001 to 895 in 2011, the percentage of the fair sex coming out to poll has seen a decline of 1.02 per cent from 2012 assembly polls.
On the contrary, the difference between the male and female voting percentage has witnessed a slight improvement from 1.03 per cent in 2012 polls, to 1.45 percent in 2017 elections.
Out of the total 1,98,79,069 registered voters, 2017 polls witnessed 1,53,81,033 exercising their franchise. Out of 1,05,03,108 male, and 93,75,546 female electors, 80,54,558 and 73,26,384, respectively, cast their votes.
Of the total 415 voters enrolled under “third gender” category, only 91 has exercised the franchise.
Highest 86.75 per cent polling was witnessed in Mansa district, whole lowest 71.21 percent was recorded in SAS Nagar (Mohali) district.
Among the assembly constituencies that has witnessed highest and the lowest polling are Sardulgarh assembly segment in Mansa at 88.94 per cent, and Amritsar West assembly constituency in Amritsar at 60.04 percent respectively.
Maximum 89.33 per cent males cast their votes in Sardulgarh, against lowest 60.07 percent in Amritsar West.
Their female counterparts polled highest 88.49 per cent in Sardulgarh constituency, against 60 per cent in Amritsar West.
When the state polled as high as 78.6 per cent during 2012 state assembly polls, it was thought that the high percentage was a vote for change. Contrarily, the results surprised everyone with the SAD-BJP combine winning the two consecutive elections, something that had happened for the first time in the Punjab's history.
Now with the anti-incumbency factor is prevailing against the SAD-BJP combine both at the Centre and in the state besides the presence of AAP as third front, the poll analysts believed that it was hard to comprehend in whose favour the wind would blow.