MUMBAI: Minority religious leaders and community NGOs are making a fervent plea to their constituents to come out and vote in strength at Wednesday’s assembly election.
Bombay Catholic Sabha has been involved in motivational campaigns since three months. Its president Dolphy D’Souza said, “Thirty of our units attached to parishes are participating in enrolment of voters, creating awareness about issues in the country and in Maharashtra in public interactive meetings in co-ordination with 25 NGOs under the umbrella of Vote For Democracy. We are also educating voters that in case of mismatch of their voting and VVPAT slip, they must register a complaint with the presiding officer. We have also been urging people not to use NOTA option as it is a waste of their vote.”
“Now in the last phase, volunteers are involved in house to house, area campaigns to motivate people to cast their vote early in the morning on Nov 20, and guiding them with their polling stations,” said D’Souza.
Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, Catholic priest and educationist, said, “Following the Karnataka model of civil society participation in the election process, different civil society groups across Maharashtra have been doing door to door meetings with residents, encouraging them to vote. Some groups are community based while others are across religious or community lines, networking to bring awareness. In the last 15 days, the groups have become constituency based, spreading information about the symbol of the major political groups. In Mumbai, these groups are now extremely active, with no financial support from candidates, but using their own resources, they are working to save democracy.”
The Muslim ulema (clergy) has always conscientiously woven its efforts into the franchise mosaic. Maulana Wahaj Athar Qasmi, a senior functionary of Jamiat Ulema E’ Hind, Maharashtra, said, “A federation named Tanzeemul Ulama Wal Aiimah has urged Muslims to make sure to vote even if they must open their shops late or are out of town and must return. It has cautioned them against voting for inducements because that will jeopardise the welfare of the country.”
Maulana Burhanuddin Qasmi of Markazul Ma’arif, Jogeshwari, said, “We as civil society members are encouraging people by gathering at society offices, masjids and by small corner meetings to participate in the democratic process and ensure maximum voting. Mumbai is not very active in electoral participation, so our efforts are to increase voter turnout.”