In tune with the celebration of democracy’s biggest festival — elections — , a centenarian freedom fighter went ahead and cast her vote at a nondescript school in a village near here on Wednesday.
Ghanta Mallikamba, 104, exercised her franchise in the school at Marikavalasa polling booth along with her 83-year-old son Ghanta Ram Mohan Rao and 78-year-old daughter-in-law G. Swarna Kumari.
“I am happy to be part of this democratic process,” Mallikamba told The Hindu .
It was not as though someone forced her to go and vote. She was very keen on voting, her granddaughter-in-law Sandhya Kiran said. In fact, the family had to get her name enrolled again as it was missing in the list.
She did not feel it a burden to go and vote, Ms. Sandhya explained.
Since each member of the family had a vote in different polling booths, Mallikamba had to wait till others cast their vote, which she did uncomplainingly. This was an inspiration for all of us to go and vote, Ms. Sandhya added.
At the polling booth, she was carried on a chair as the family members felt that walking the distance in the hot sun would be a strain on the otherwise physically fit person.
