Elderly cast votes with enthusiasm in MCD elections

Shanti Bala Vaidya, 106, travelled with her daughter to a polling location in the Bara Hindu Rao neighbourhood of north Delhi on Sunday morning to cast her ballot in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) election.

Vaidya’s 40-year-old daughter Kamla told that she has not missed a single election since she started voting. Vaidya cannot talk and only understand Bengali.

“The only word she utters is ‘Maa’. She calls me Maa,” Kamla, who is a dry fruit vendor, said.

Vaidya was assisted in casting her ballot by police officers stationed at the Deputy Ganj polling location.

Sagar Singh Kalsi, the deputy commissioner of police for the north, claimed that the police have an obligation to voters, particularly the elderly.

“Our personnel at polling booths have been briefed and sensitised to assist anyone who needs help,” he said.

Every election, according to Amina Bibi, 105, she votes early in the morning.

This time, the voting place was around 300 metres from her house, and she opted to travel alone despite numerous neighbours asking if they could go with her.

Despite the fact that she is too old to talk clearly, she expressed her desire to vote.

Next month, Gurdas Jeet Singh will turn 100, but his enthusiasm for casting a ballot remains the same, according to his grandson Bimal Jeet.

“This is our right. Unless we come out of our homes, how will we have people liked by us in power? Mere complaining sitting at the comfort of our homes is not going to change things,” Gurdas Jeet Singh said.

He also expressed concern that the younger generation does not show interest in voting.

“I always ensured that I should never miss my right to vote,” he said.

They cast their ballots in the Shanti Nagar neighbourhood of East Delhi.

The MCD election has more than 1.45 crore voters, 78.93 lakh of whom are men and 66.10 lakh of whom are women.

In accordance with data from the Delhi State Election Commission, 229 voters are 100 years of age or older, and 2,04,301 voters are 80 years of age or older.

(With inputs from PTI)

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