Gautam Buddh Nagar: First-timers excited to vote

A total of 24,223 voters in Gautam Buddh Nagar, between the ages of 18 and 19 years, got the chance to vote for the very first time in their lives on Friday, with most of them stating that they found the process smooth and the whole experience enlightening.

Eighteen -year-old Devisha Jain came with her father and grandfather to vote at the polling booth at Prateek Wisteria apartments in Sector 77, Noida.

“Being a first-timer, I was excited to exercise my franchise. As the booth was in my society itself, it was very convenient and the whole process was over in 10 minutes. Election officials were patient as they explained me the process,” said Jain, who is also a resident of Prateek Wisteria.

The day also turned out to be special for 19-year-old Rahul Singh, a mathematics student at Delhi University, who came to vote for the first time. He stressed that the government should focus on students and said that “in turn this would lead to the development of the nation.”

Medical aspirant Aarti Dutta from the Noida Sector 15 booth, who was also voting for the first time, said her family was very supportive.

The “Youth Booth” managed by youngsters at Sharda University in Greater Noida saw international students welcoming first-time voters with a red rose.

“I am on election duty at the booth and am very impressed to see the election process in India,” said 27-year-old Ibrahim, a Nigerian PhD student at the private university in Greater Noida.

22-year-old Akash Kaushik, who came here to cast his first vote, said, “I read up on each candidates’ manifesto and background over the last few days to make an informed decision today.”

Not everything was smooth sailing, however. Several voters said they faced issues while voting, complaining that the dissemination of information from the state election body lacked clarity on guidelines.

Some voters at Noida’s sector 14,15,15A/15,29 and 27 polling centres were hassled by “no cell phone policy” while others faced issues in matching their voter ID registration number as they were not allowed to bring a mobile phone with them.

“I had to leave my phone with the security guard,” a resident of Noida Sector 14 said, asking not to be named.

As per the guidelines set forth by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in order to uphold the fairness and integrity of the electoral process, voters are strictly prohibited from carrying mobile phones inside polling stations.

“Booth level workers and election officers shared Whatsapp messages with all registered mobile phone hours ahead of the polling time,” an official present at the booth said.

Similarly, voters who queued up at the Club House in Noida sector 15 polling booth said they were “not informed” about the guidelines properly.

“I did not carry any ID with me and I was aware that no phones were allowed inside. Certain information was not communicated to us properly,” Sahil Kothari, a resident, said.

Weeks ahead of the first phase of voting, the ECI had issued a directive while clarifying that one can still vote even if they do not have a physical copy of their voter ID card. However, it would be important to ensure that the voter’s name is present in the voter list, the directive had said.