North India Statesman
News India Live, Digital Desk: Amidst the voting for the first phase of Bihar Assembly elections, while on one hand people are enthusiastically participating in the festival of democracy, on the other hand political rhetoric is also at its peak. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made a sensational allegation saying that the government is removing women’s names from the voter list on the lines of ‘Brazil Model’ so that they can be prevented from voting. But when the women voters who reached the polling stations were talked to to know the truth of his claim, they dispelled these allegations by showing their voter I-cards.
“Look here, there is a card with a photo, we are coming to vote.”
In many districts including Patna, Muzaffarpur, Saran where voting is taking place today, long queues of women were seen since morning. When the media asked some women voters about Rahul Gandhi’s allegations, their answer was direct, simple and very effective.
A woman showed her voter ID card and said, “Who says our names have been struck off? Look, we have a card with a photo on it. We are just coming after casting our vote. All this is nonsense.”
At the same time, another elderly woman voter said, “We vote every year, this time too. Who has the courage to delete our name? As long as we are alive, we will definitely vote.” There was not only confidence in these answers of women, but also a kind of indifference towards political claims. For him, casting his vote was more important than any rhetoric.
What was Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Brazil Model’ allegation?
Rahul Gandhi had claimed that just as voters are influenced in a special way in Brazil, in the same way in India too, women are being targeted as part of a conspiracy. Their allegation was that the names of a large number of women have been silently removed from the voter list so that they could not vote and the voting percentage could be affected.
Claims on land were made in air
However, the reaction and active participation of the women present at the polling stations was presenting the exact opposite picture to Rahul Gandhi’s claims. Women not only exercised their franchise, but also dismissed such allegations as “election talk”.
This incident shows how aware and empowered today’s voters, especially women voters, are. Instead of blindly trusting the claims of any political party, it gives utmost importance to its participation in this biggest celebration of democracy. Their vote is their biggest and true answer.
