Bhubaneswar, April 22: The 2019 Lok Sabha elections, which started April 11, and will cover 543 constituencies in seven phases, has completed two phases and is ready for the third phase April 23. In the third phase, polling will be held in 115 constituencies across 14 states. Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Goa, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu will vote April 23. Along with the Lok Sabha elections, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim are having Assembly elections too. Nowadays, work takes many people to distant lands. In Bhubaneswar, there are many people from outside the state. Although voting is important, it is difficult for them to take
leave and go for voting to their home states.
Orissa POST talked to some people from other states working in the city about the situation in their states, and who they think will win in the LS elections.
Dipankar Ghosh of West Bengal, who works in Infosys, said in West Bengal, where elections are being held in seven phases starting April 11 for 42 Lok Sabha seats, the political situation is not satisfactory. “You cannot trust any party or their representatives. People might say to look at the candidate and vote, but they are not the ones who make decisions. It is the big shots of their parties who do that. These big shots will fight with someone and will embrace them the next day to gain their ends. Commoners vote for money and other benefits. The number of sensible persons is less than one per cent in Indian politics. Unfortunately they are not candidates. So I will not vote,” Dipankar said.
Gade Animish from Hyderabad (Telangana) who works in Tech Mahindra said that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) will sweep the polls. He said, “When it comes to national politics only the urban educated can assess issues. The TRS is likely to bag all Parliamentary seats. Of the 17 LS seats, TRS would win 14
for sure,” he added.
Divya Soni of Madhya Pradesh said that she cannot go home for voting due to work pressure. She said, “In Madhya Pradesh the Congress is in power, but in the Lok Sabha elections which will be held April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19, the BJP will definitely win most of the 29 LS seats.”
Satanik Das of Karnataka said that due to his official tours he will not able to vote. He said, “Karnataka has a history of fractured verdicts in Assembly elections, and it may reflect in its LS mandate as well.” The opinion polls had suggested a tough fight, in which the BJP might have an edge over the Janata Dal Secular and the Congress, which joined hands last year after elections to keep the BJP out of power. The Congress and the JDS will win 13 of Karnataka’s 28 seats, according to a poll of opinion polls. That is an increase of only two seats compared to 2014, when the two parties had contested separately. At that time the Congress had won nine and the JDS two, Das said.
Akhil Krishnan from Mumbai who works in Bhubaneswar said that he will go home for voting. He said Maharashtra which has 48 seats, will vote in the Lok Sabha elections April 11, 18, 23 and 29. In this election Mumbai is living up to its image of a progressive city by making issues like the environment and LGBT rights a part of the campaign, Akhil added.
Arindam Ganguly, OP