“If I do not vote I will be considered dead,” stated Adivasi Raj Gond voter Kudmetha Bheembai of her belief which is the driving force for voters in tribal mandals to record higher percentage of polling, in erstwhile united Adilabad district.
“I do not remember who told me this but I have believed it since I started voting some 40 years back or so,” recalled the septuagenarian from the far flung Metiguda village in Sirpur mandal of Asifabad (ST) constituency, in Kumram Bheem Asifabad district as she joined a group of her compatriots headed towards their polling station.
Lambada issue
This election having come in the backdrop of the Adivasi movement for removing Lambada tribe from the list of Scheduled Tribe, the percentage was expected to be higher. It was higher but, there was no uniformity in the pattern according to data made available by election authorities in Adilabad, Nirmal and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts.
As 29,317 voters out of a total of 31,130 from the mandals of Gadiguda and Narnoor cast their votes on Friday, the highest polling percentage at 94.27 was recorded in these administrative units which are purely Agency mandals comprising of a sizeable population of Lambadas and the aboriginal Raj Gonds and other tribes like Kolam and Pardhan, among others. Though the mandals are located in residual Adilabad, they form part of the Asifabad constituency.
The constituency recorded an overall polling percentage of 86 which is about 8 % more than that recorded in the 2014 election.
It is assumed that the higher polling percentage of voting among tribals had helped improve last election’s records.
Of the 69,214 voters in the mandals of Indervelli and Utnoor in Khanapur (ST) constituency, 49,432 cast their votes which is 71.41 %. The tribal mandal of Indervelli recorded a high of 83.49 % thanks to the tribals voters.
Missing names
The lower percentage of voting elsewhere is being attributed to the apathy among non-tribal voters who constitute a majority in Utnoor and other mandals in the constituency. The missing names of ethnic voters from rolls at many polling stations also contributed to the factor to some extent.
