Assembly polls: Homeless voters hope to get better future this time

NEW DELHI: "Political leaders should help us in building better future of our children," said homeless voters in the city on the upcoming assembly polls.

"I don't want my children to face harsh conditions which I faced being homeless. I want my kids to live a happy and a healthy life," said Rinki, a homeless woman. She is a mother of two children (aged 2 and 5 years) and lives in a shelter home in Sarai Kale Khan area. Other homeless have similar views like Rinki.

When asked about their expectations from political candidates, homeless people said that they (candidates) should provide them with food, clothing, shelter and help them in empowering their children.

Kusum along with her husband lives at the shelter home in south-east Delhi. "I have sent my three children to my brother's house as I wouldn't be able to keep them with me because of our poor economic condition. Whoever wins the election they should help mothers like me," said Kusum whose husband works as a labourer.

The homeless people also praised the Delhi Government for making shelter homes more friendly. Santosh Oroan, a homeless man, lives with her wife and children at the shelter home. "During bone-chilling cold, the shelter home is like a roof over our heads. It has come to our rescue during tough days," Oraon said.

Meanwhile, shelterless people also said that they will vote for the candidate whose focus will be on employment generation. Ajay (23), another homeless said political leaders should give focus on generating employment.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) is motivating these people to exercise their voting rights.

According to DUSIB, since 2019 Lok Sabha election over 10,000 homeless people had got voter identity cards so far.

"In the past elections, over 22,000 homeless people had got voter id cards. We have been encouraging homeless people to cast their vote," said Bipin Rai, an official from DUSIB.