Delhi surpassed its previous records of voting by registering nearly 70 per cent polls on Wednesday but failed to better its record as compared to four other Indian States — Mizoram, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh that went to polls simultaneously.
Of these States, Mizoram recorded the highest voter turnout at 81 per cent, while Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh registered 75 per cent. The poll process in Madhya Pradesh finished with 71 per cent polling. The high voting percentage in Delhi can be attributed to dual anti-incumbency in Delhi coupled with a successful awareness campaign conducted by the Election Commission.
The last vote was polled as late as 8.30 pm in areas like Okhla, Karawal Nagar, Seempuri, Gokalpuri and Burari. As compared to last year’s 57.58 per cent voting, Delhi registered a steep increase of nearly 15 per cent this elections. High voting in these constituencies assume greater significance as these areas are largely dominated by unauthorised colonies, slums and JJ clusters. Sources said this is also an indicator of their anguish against the incumbent Government and their resolve to vote for better governance in the national Capital.
In 2008, the overall voting percentage in Delhi was 57.58, while it stood at 53.4 per cent in 2003. In 1998, merely 43.9 per cent voters had cast their votes. However, in 1991, the turnout was higher at 61.7 per cent. Till now this was the best poll figures in Delhi's electoral politics. Out of the total 1.19 crore electorate in Delhi, a whopping 82 lakh voters are estimated to have cast their votes in the keenly-contested battle between the BJP, the Congress and the first-timer AAP. Though officials said the exact figures could only be confirmed by Thursday morning, they indicated that at least 12 lakh new voters also participated in the poll process.
Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev said that the enthusiasm was high among the Delhiites this time which was primarily a result of a successful awareness campaign and the model polling stations which were introduced keeping in mind the comfort of the voters. The CEO also said that this time the election was violence-free. “There was no incident of violence from anywhere. Things went smoothly and we are happy for a successful completion of polling,” the CEO said.
Voting started at a moderate pace and only 30 to 35 per cent votes were polled till 2 pm. However, it gained momentum in the later half with people pouring in at the polling stations. Even as the entry gates to the polling stations was closed at 5 pm, a long queue of voters stood there forcing the officials to extend the polling till late evening. According to officials, at least 1.72 lakh voters cast their votes after 5 pm.