Hangah and Nehama villages may be part of the same assembly segment, but they presented a contrasting picture of voting on Thursday.
Part of Langate Assembly segment, Hangah today witnessedbrisk polling, with people lining up before the polling booths from earlymorning. Till 11.30 am, 174 people, out of the total 605 registered voters, hadexercised their right to franchise at the polling station number 39.
“What we have achieved by boycotting polls in the past 30years? Why should we waste our vote?” asked Mushtaq Ahmad, a local resident.
A group of villagers sitting in the courtyard of the schoolsaid they have voted for development.
“We have not witnessed any development since 1947 here. Wehave been neglected by successive regimes of the state,” said Abdur RashidBhat, a local resident.
Just a few kilometers away from Hangah, the polling stationset up at Nehama wore a deserted look with just two votes being polled out ofthe total 546.
It was not voters but additional security forces who reachedthis polling station to chase away a group of protesting youth. As the volleyof stones intensified, entire polling staff at this polling station lockedthemselves up in the voting room.
“I think this is the only polling station in the entire belt where such an incident has taken place. I don’t think we had enough security provided,” said a polling staff member, wishing anonymity. Interestingly, only BJP had its polling agent at the village where Er. Rashid and People’s Conference have a strong presence.
SAQIB MALIK