Graduates’ Constituency elections: Peaceful polling amid pandemic

Special Correspondent :

This year, the real fight is between Mayor Sandeep Joshi of BJP and Adv Abhijeet Wanjari of Cong backed by MVA

THE fate of 19 candidates contesting election to Maharashtra Legislative Council from Nagpur Division Graduates’ Constituency has been sealed in the ballot boxes. Around 55 per cent registered graduates from the division comprising Nagpur, Wardha, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara and Gondia districts of Vidarbha turned out to excercise their franchise on Tuesday. With deployment of heavy security at all the 320 polling booths across six districts, no untoward incident was reported during polling that continued till 5 pm. Almost more than half of the booths were in Nagpur district alone. As many as 31 candidates had filed their nominations.

Of them, five were rejected, seven withdrew from the contest leaving 19 in the fray. This year, names of 1.25 lakh males and 81,024 females were figured in the voters’ list. During last election in 2014, 1.91 lakh male and 95,904 female graduates had registered their names in the voters’ list. This year, there is a decline of 47,825 male graduates in Nagpur district’s voter list. With masks being made mandatory for every voter at polling stations, there elections were conducted strictly adhering to the COVID-19 protocol. Every visitor, including the staff on election duty, was subjected to thermal scanning. The voters, whose temperature was found to be above normal, were given a token. Such voters with tokens were allowed to cast their vote in the last two hours of polling.

This year, the real fight is between Mayor Sandeep Joshi of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Adv Abhijeet Wanjari of Indian National Congress backed by Maha Vikas Akhadi. Nagpur Division Graduates’ Constituency had been the bastion of BJP for half a century. In 2014 elections, Prof Anil Sole of BJP, who was Mayor of Nagpur, had defeated Baban Taywade of Congress. Taywade was RTM Nagpur University’s Management Council member. Prof Sole had defeated Taywade with a margin of 31,259 votes. Out of the total 94,084 valid votes polled, Prof Sole had secured 52,485, well above 50% mark. From 1988 to 2014, the constituency was represented by BJP’s Nitin Gadkari, who later won the Lok Sabha polls from Nagpur, to become Union Transport Minister in Narendra Modi-led NDA Government at the Centre. Gadkari had emerged victorious from Graduates’ constituency for five times in a row. Prior to Gadkari, Gangadharrao Fadnavis, father of Devendra Fadnavis, Leader of Opposition in Legislative Assembly and former Maharashtra Chief Minister, was elected from the constituency. Following death of sitting member Gangadharrao Fadnavis, the vacancy was caused and Gadkari was elected in 1988.

Graduates’ polls witness enthusiastic turnout

Principal Correspondent :

Nagpur Graduates’ Constituency elections held on Tuesday, witnessed quite a good turn-out for the first time. Despite pandemic and following Covid-19 norms voters thronged the poling centres. Due to the meticulous preparedness at the level of Divisional Commissioner Dr Sanjeev Kumar and Collector Ravindra Thakare, the electoral process was conducted in a better manner. In last election, around 37 was the voting percentage. As compared to it today’s 55 per cent voting is much better. Now everybody is awaiting the poll results to be declared on December 3, the counting of which would begin at 8 am at Divisional Sports Complex, Mankapur.

In the wake of pandemic Election Commission had made arrangement for Election Officer and Assistant Election Officer to monitor the electoral process from the headquarters. Both Divisional Commissioner and Collector monitored the same through Web Casting mechanism. Both the officers saw to it that no untoward incident should take place.

To compel people follow the physical distancing norms, the administration had drawn the circles at the polling centres. Both Sandip Joshi and Adv Abhijit Wanjari alleged that the voting was a bit slow and they registered complaint with the administration. Adv Wanjari while talking to ‘The Hitavada’ said, “It was observed that people came to polling centres and returned home after seeing long queue. Some voters brought it to my notice. I immediately lodged complaint with the concerned officer and demanded to increased one polling room.” Of course, some of the voters who returned home did not turn up again. Despite new registration of voters, the mistakes in the voters’ list were negligible. Some people complained with media that their names were transfered to other zone.

For example, a middle-aged man, a resident of South Nagpur came to know that his name figured in the voting list of North Nagpur. He had to go to the polling centre in North Nagpur to exercise his franchise. He also admitted that administration informed him about the change well in advance. The polling per centage in Nagpur district alone witnessed all time high at 61. The last report received from Information and Publicity says, the final number would be declared by Election Officer late night, but estimated voting till 5 pm reported was around 55 per cent.