LOWEST VOTING IN UPSCALE RESIDENTIAL AREAS IN GGM

GURUGRAM: At 22.81%, DLF Phase 3 in the city witnessed the lowest voter turnout in the district in the assembly election held on Monday. Other areas like DLF phases 1, 2 and 4 also reported a low voter turnout, according to the data provided by the district administration.

Of the nine polling booths in DLF Phase 3, which falls under the Badshahpur constituency, the lowest turnout was at the community centre polling booth while a maximum turnout of 45.19% was witnessed at the Tagore International School booth. There are more than 7,000 registered voters in the area. Residents said they did not step out to vote because development issues were still unaddressed in their area. Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) members of the colonies said that they were not pinning their hopes on the political system as it had failed to address their issues thus far.

“Illegal guest houses, several illegal entry/exit roads created by residents of the adjoining Nathupur village and encroachments on the green belts and parks have become a serious concern now. We have been raising these issues for several years and have filed a lot of complaints at the CM window, but there has been no serious effort by the government—not even by the local representative we elected in the last assembly election to address these issues,” Sameer Puri, a resident of DLF Phase 3, who did not vote, said.

Of the four constituencies which fall under Gurugram district, Gurgaon constituency reported the lowest turnout of 52.36%, followed by Badshahpur with at 57.61% turnout. Prominent areas and societies of the city like the DLF colonies come under these two constituencies.

According to data provided by the district administration, DLF phases 2 and 4 also had poor voter turnout. “It is surprising that people of Phase 2 did not turn up for election. In Lok Sabha, people from our area enthusiastically turned up for voting. Residents this time could not connect with the candidates. Even the candidates did not make an effort to interact with people and talk about their issues.