Pune Civic Elections Face Multiple Hurdles as Voters Struggle with Process
Voters across Pune encountered numerous difficulties while casting their ballots in the PMC and PCMC elections on Thursday. The four-ward panel system created widespread confusion, with many citizens unsure about selecting four candidates instead of one. Polling staff worked tirelessly to explain the process to almost every voter, visibly exhausted by the end of the day.
System Changes Create Confusion
Until 2002, Pune followed a one-ward-one-corporator system. This evolved to a three-corporator ward system in 2007, then a two-corporator system in 2012, before settling on the current four-member ward system in 2017. Many voters, including educated individuals, found the current arrangement challenging to understand.
A booth level officer in Pashan explained the situation clearly. "Lack of awareness is the main reason for the confusion, with each voter taking an extra minute or two to complete the process. Even educated people are finding it hard," he stated.
Documentation Problems and Missing Names
Several polling stations faced immediate issues when voting began at 7am. Photocopies of the self-declaration proforma required for voters with multiple entries were unavailable at some locations, causing significant delays. Multiple voter entries refer to names appearing twice or even thrice on electoral rolls.
Many citizens could not find their names on voter lists. Presh Sanghani, a polling agent, highlighted this problem. "The problem is that we can check the names of those whose voting is in a particular booth. If their names are not there, we cannot find out where their names are. And this is causing inconvenience to us as well as voters," he explained.
Neeraj Saxena, a resident of NIBM Road, visited three different locations before finally finding his name at the third booth. "I am lucky that all these polling booths are in close proximity to each other, or else I almost made up my mind to skip voting," he admitted.
Family Voting Issues and Administrative Problems
Some families faced the unusual situation of being assigned to different wards. Activist Vivek Velankar shared his personal experience. His son and daughter-in-law, both residing in Sadashiv Peth, received assignments to different wards unnecessarily.
"Why should one family vote in different wards when most residents have no connection with representatives from other areas? With broader ward boundaries, these issues have become quite common," Velankar questioned, urging the administration to address such problems.
Identity Verification Challenges
Magarpatta resident Santosh Ranawali, aged 76, experienced a different kind of problem. She was denied her right to vote after booth agents found discrepancies between her voter card and Aadhaar. Her maiden name appeared on the Aadhaar while her married name was on the voter ID card.
"This was not a problem in the last election, as I was allowed to vote. But this election, I wasn't allowed to. My daughter voted at the same public school, but I wasn't allowed to, despite my name being on the list at the same booth," Ranawali expressed her disappointment.
Technical Glitches and Bogus Voting
EVM glitches were reported in five to six locations across PMC and PCMC areas until afternoon. These technical issues caused polling to stop for several minutes before repairs allowed voting to resume.
More seriously, instances of bogus voting emerged. In the Someshwarwadi area of ward 9, Rahul Meghawat discovered someone had already voted in his name. The 19-year-old expressed his shock at the situation.
"I was shocked to see that even in this day and age, with an updated voters' list, so many checks, etc, this happened," Meghawat said. The polling officer at IMD Colony in Pashan confirmed that each voter underwent triple-checking before being allowed to vote, suggesting the incident requires investigation.
Newly Merged Villages Face Additional Challenges
Residents of newly merged villages experienced particular confusion as polling booth locations changed after their areas joined PMC. People accustomed to zilla parishad booths found both the numbers and locations of polling stations had changed.
Undri residents Rahul and Vaidehi Saran did not receive voting slips and went to their usual polling centre, only to discover they needed to travel three kilometers to cast their votes.
Technology Adoption and Voter Assistance
In many booths, volunteers used laptops and mobile devices instead of traditional paper lists to help people locate their polling stations. Some locations even featured handheld printers to produce voter slips on demand.
Many residents utilized links provided by PMC and PCMC to check their names and identify their correct polling stations. However, Sehra Khan, a 65-year-old from Kondhwa, received incorrect information on a political party's voting slip, forcing her to search for her name at three different booths before finally voting after nearly an hour of effort.
"This could have been better planned. Election officials should have visited earlier and distributed the slips," Khan suggested.
Widespread Frustration Among Voters
Many people from Pimpri Chinchwad also discovered their names missing from voter lists. Rajendra Jambandhu from Kalpataru Estate expressed his frustration, noting that despite voting in the Vidhan Sabha elections, his name and many others were absent from the current voters' list.
The combination of these issues created significant challenges for Pune's civic elections, testing both voters' patience and the election machinery's preparedness.
