: While there were a number of complaints about names of voters missing from the list, the Election Commission also came in for praise from citizens for its doggedness in pursuing complaints and ensuring the voters exercised their franchise.
In a Facebook post, Chandramouly Sethuraman posted a status message in the morning that he went to the polling booth at 7 a.m. only to be told by the polling officials that his name was not on the voters list.
Minutes later, he got a phone call asking what had transpired at the polling booth. The man identified himself as an election officer and asked Mr. Sethuraman to visit the polling booth again with his Aadhaar card. “I went to the school where the officer was present and he went to some people and asked them to give the sheets where voter details are mentioned ... I searched and found my name in about 10 minutes. Immediately, he asked the officers there to give the voter details sheet to the people itself and help them if they are not able to find their name” he wrote.
The official also reportedly told Mr. Sethuraman that he would receive his voter ID card within two months. Commending the EC for going out of the way to ensure that voters do not miss out on their right to vote, he wrote, “For the hard work and sincere effort they have put in trying to reach every voter, I wish we get a vote percentage of above 90 at least.”
Unpleasant
In contrast to Mr. Sethuraman’s experience, things did not go well for Krishna Babu of West Mambalam. Mr. Babu headed to his booth, Narayani Mission School, with his son – a first-time voter – only to find that the voters list with the officials was “messed up”. “The serial number I had and the number on the list was different. I had to take 20-25 voters list books to look for my name. I also wanted my son to vote . It took me almost two hours to find my name,” he said.
Mr. Babu told The Hindu that the EC should have entered details of only that particular area on laptops at the booths. “It would have been simpler to find details. They were using only paper lists. Many people left without voting because of the confusion caused by the EC,” he said. There was no responsible authority at the polling station to sort out the problem. “There was a phone number listed at the booth. No one picked up that line till 5 p.m.,” he said.
‘For the effort the EC officials have put in, wish we get at least 90 per cent voting’
