Ballot Confusion Leads to Spike in ‘Nota’
He observed that many of his relatives, especially elderly persons, had picked ‘Nota’ in confusion.
Adilabad: Some voters opted for the ‘None of the Above’ (Nota) option in the recent gram panchayat elections, affecting the chances of several candidates.
In many gram panchayats of the erstwhile Adilabad district, up to 10 votes were cast for ‘Nota’. Observers said elderly and uneducated locals may have chosen the option out of confusion in elections where most voters are familiar with the candidates.
Devidas of Jamdapur noted that even one postal ballot had opted for ‘Nota’ out of the six postal ballots polled. Two unmarked ballot papers were also found in Adilabad Rural mandal. He suggested that illiterate voters or those in inebriated condition might have dropped the ballot papers without marking any symbol.
Sangidi in Bela mandal saw 44 voters in the sarpanch election and 73 in the ward member polls take the ‘Nota’ route. Out of 1,810 registered voters, 1,583 turned up at the booths. BJP-supported Bhupathi Reddy won by 25 votes against his Congress-backed rival, a margin smaller than the total ‘Nota’ count. The BRS-backed candidate secured 175 votes, while an independent received 29.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Rupesh Reddy, who lost the election, said he was shocked by the ‘Nota’ total. He observed that many of his relatives, especially elderly persons, had picked ‘Nota’ in confusion.
It is learnt that the long gap in using ballot papers contributed to confusion among elderly voters. In some cases, they reportedly placed their mark on the plain backside of the ballot paper without opening it.
Observers noted that many contesting candidates did not campaign with a model ballot paper in the gram panchayats to create awareness among elderly voters about the correct way to cast their vote.