With the sun blazing and Maoist threats still hanging heavy in the air, people in far-off Bastar could have easily stayed indoors on election day.
But they didn’t.
Just two days after a fierce encounter between a group of banned CPI (Maoists) and security personnel left 29 Naxals dead, the region witnessed a 68% voter turnout, up from 66.04 percent in 2019.
Of the eleven Lok Sabha constituencies in Chhattisgarh, Bastar was the only segment to vote in the first phase of the general elections due to security concerns. The remaining 10 segments will vote in the second and third phases.
The Election Commission had set up 1,961 polling booths across Bastar. Of these, 196 were labeled as critical and sensitive. There were more than twenty booths in the rebels’ den and the polling stations had to be flown in special air force helicopters.
According to committee officials, all voting parties from the interior returned to the headquarters on Saturday evening. No one was allowed to spend the night there.
Some polling stations were asked to remain in the nearby police station or security forces camp.
After collating the figures, the commission stated that 68.30 percent of the voters exercised their franchise despite the scorching temperature of 42 degrees and the Naxals’ call for election boycott.
The voting percentage is 2.26 percent higher than the number of votes cast in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
All eight assembly segments under the Bastar Lok Sabha constituency recorded an increase in voter turnout compared to previous general elections. The voting percentage in the most Maoist-affected constituencies of Bijapur, Dantewada and Konta increased by 1.20 percent, 10.30 percent and 7.21 percent respectively.
The high poll percentage in the Maoist pocket has sparked the debate on which party will get the dividend. Though there are 11 candidates in the fray, the constituency will see a bipolar battle between Mahesh Kashyap of the BJP and Kawasi Lakhma of Congress, the former Industries Minister of Chhattisgarh.
Interestingly, the fate of BJP’s state president Kiran Deo and his Congress colleague Deepak Baij are also at stake as both hail from Bastar.
Both the BJP and Congress are trying to impress women voters.
While the ruling BJP has already started the scheme under which married women will get Rs 1,000 per month, the Congress has announced to pay Rs 1 lakh per year. It will be the women voters in Bastar who will decide the electoral fate of any candidate.
The constituency has more female voters than men. Of the 14,72,207 voters, 7,71,679 are women, 7,00,476 are men and 52 are members of the third gender.
First print: April 22, 2024 | 6:03 PM IST