BENGALURU: In an interesting move to encourage the electorate to come out and vote, a few schools in the city sent mobile messages to parents asking them to cast their franchise and let their children get some extra marks! It, however, received mixed response from the parents and public.
One of the parents, Ms Jayashree Shekar, said that she could not believe herself when she read the message from her daughter’s school. “It could be a gesture with a good intention to urge people to come out and vote. But I still don’t support such an exercise.”
The message from the school, where her daughter is studying in the third standard, read, “Dear parents, do you want extra two marks for your child in every subject in the recently held tests!!!???? Vote in today’s BBMP election and show your indexed finger on Monday.”
She said, “Casting vote is a fundamental right of a citizen and he or she should not succumb to any kind of inducements. When we say that accepting cash or kind is unconstitutional how can getting marks to their wards without their efforts is acceptable?”
Ms Umadevi Devaraj, a JP Nagar resident, was happy with a similar message from her children’s school go. “School authorities have found an innovative method to attract voters to the polling booths. Schools have no vested interest, and taking the initiative to ensure a better voter turnout was a welcome move.”
She said, “If their children are getting two extra marks in each subject, why shouldn’t the parents flaunt their inked finger? The children will get extra 12 marks from six major streams.”
