They Tricked me into Voting
So the story goes… Since the morning I was double minded if I should cast my vote or not, after looking into the candidate’s background I was not convinced if they were the right people for the job. At 11am I decided that I should at least go and register my vote using the clause 49(o) conduct of Election Rules, 1961.
I stood in the line and when my turn came, I was asked to show my slip to the lady who was verifying the slips… she asked me in which envelope I got the slip… I replied Congress and then I asked her why I should be getting it Congress’s envelopes in the first place. She promprly said, that I shouldn’t have… and after a brief pause where I was thinking that at least someone here has some sense, she replied that I should have got them in BJP envelops… I was like WTF!
Anyways, my turn came to vote and since I had decided to use 49(o) I started looking on the machine for the button… guess what! I could not find it. So I asked the staff, they said they did not know about it. I was shocked and told them that this has been there since 1961… how the hell can you not know about this. Got no reply… just blank faces. I then asked if I walk out, will my vote be registered… they said no. One of them asked me to vote for the party I thought was the least corrupt amongst the lot and so I did. This is how I was tricked into voting.
I am still shocked, the election commission can’t do anything right, neither can they stop politicians from making hate speeches nor can they protect my rights as a citizen.
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U couldnt find the button on the machine….Dats really sad!!! …God knows where our country is heading..
Tabitha, it’s not that i could not find the button.. it was not on the machine itself and that’s the sad part. Today, i read that Chief EC of Delhi is happy for the good turn-out this elections, hardly does she know that most of the came to exercise clause 49 and ended up voting like me 😉
The current implementation, as mentioned here, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/49-O#Present_Implications_of_Rule_49-O requires that a voter contact the presiding officer to register his or her non-vote choice. This of course is a violation of privacy but , in my opinion, better than voting for an unwanted party. If the above option is selected by all those wishing to exercise the option of 49(o) an RTI query can at least be done to come up with the no of non-votes and the lack of faith in the current candidates can be demonstrated.
I appreciate the intention. But frankly, all those who are looking for Clause 49 are like the Right Wings in India – they ve a problem about everything, no solution; they oppose most things govt. would do but would not have a clue about government. I have no idea if all Indians were to push Clause 49, what the poor EC can do.
@Sankt: Yes, you are right… i pretty much have a problem with everything the govt. does and that’s why i cribb but my cribbs are not aimless rants about nothing, there is always a good reason behind it. It’s people like me who help identify the problem. For every 1 person like me there are 10 who say, “itna to chalta hai!”. My problem is that i do not accept mediocrity and hypocrisy which in India is as commons as dal chawal. My problem is that i want to see India at par with western countries…not in 40 years.. but now! Why is our infrastructure no where as compared to our western counterparts? Why don’t we have proper electricity and water? Why we are still called developing country even 60 years after independence?
No body is talking for developing the route of the honest system.The candidate who have filed their nomination for election have declared their income/ wealth status of varying amount from lakhs to crores.Whether the income/assets procured by all aspiring candidate as net savings stands on record of the Income Tax deptt in financial year showing also sources of their income?mere putting on record and filling on affidavit is going to benefit whom is an open secret.The efforts of Honble T.N. seshan have been filtered.The candidate on winning election if shows disobedience to party,out of many methods, he can be subjected to face Income Tax deptt trailor for scrutiny of income sources filed as a nominee of the party by the party side.The income tax deptt burns its whole energy in scrutinising millions of salaried govt employee whose every penny is on record of govt and is already taken care of by their concerned office DDO,followed by Audit scrutiny.There is no chance of escaping tax from payments received from govt. side.against their offically declared sources of income.Can suo moto INCOME TAX DEPTT take cognisance of income as SAVINGS vis a vis income tax paid by MLA/MP/MLC candidates SHOWN in their nomination paper submitted for election,orI.T. has to seek permission from the govt for the job,I T deptt should review the substance in tax work.Election I-card,election canvassing norms,declaration of net sources of wealth status were the basic reforms introduced by the then CEC for improved governance of the system.The media has also over looked election re form’s spirit but plays its role tactfully and adopts policy of pick and choose not believing in the system of justice for all.
H.T. has reported in its column’must read’ that all candidates who have filed nomination for election are under scanner of I.T.deptt sounds loud.Scanner,vigilance etc words are not dignified/graceful words,income shown on paper by candidates is neither confidenial nor unlawful only it has to be justifed from tax point of view. Speaking transparency through net and computerised evaluation would elliminate the chances of grivances from either side.Vigilance and scanner’s are tools of any govt. deptt.which are mostly used to cut to a person to its size by superior authority on any ground .