Participation of urban voters in polls far from satisfactory

PATNA: Kumhrar and Bankipore assembly segments of Patna Sahib parliamentary constituency recorded the lowest voter turnout among the six assembly segments of the high-profile seat which went to the polls on Sunday. Kumhrar recorded a meagre 37.53% voter turnout and Bankipore 37.76%.

City areas falling under Kumhrar and Bankipore assembly segments are Ashok Rajpath, Boring Road, Kidwaipuri, Kankerbagh and Rajendra Nagar. These areas are mostly inhabited by service and influential business class people. Since this particular class of society is considered literate and aware of their rights, the lower voter turnout is quite perplexing.
Explaining the reason behind lower voter turnout, retired IAS officer Gopal Shankar Prasad said, “Urban population tend to have an easy approach towards the polling process. They are not enthusiastic enough to come out in scorching heat to exercise their franchise.”
Prasad, also a part-time law teacher, said rural voters show much enthusiasm when it comes to exercising franchise. “The rural voters still live in joint families. On the polling day, they come out together to exercise their franchise. These voters treat polling day as a festival,” he said.
Overall, voter turnout at Patna Sahib parliamentary constituency was 43.54%. Patalipura, another Lok Sabha constituency in Patna district, fared much better with a voter turnout of 57.26%.
“Most electors from my area have migrated to other states for job and education. In a family of four, only two reside in the city on an average. Those residing in other states do not come to the city to exercise their franchise,” BJP MLA from Bankipore Nitin Naveen said.
The Pataliputra constituency, on the other hand, has a sizable presence of rural voters.