After showing my id card and putiing the ink mark on the finger i told the presiding officer that i would like to deny my vote to all the candidates on voting list. He said that all that i could do is REFUSE MY VOTE. So I wrote on the register REFUSING VOTE and signed. Mindyou all this in the presence of the political party agents sitting in the booth.
Therefore my vote was NOT A SECRET ONE. Is this not a infringement of my constitutional right? Whom should I approach to clarification, if not redressal, of my grievance?
It is my opinion that a sizable section of voters would opt to invalidate their votes if it can be done secretly. This is the section of the population who have like me, lost faith of and respect for each and every political party. Is there a single Party here untainted by corruption and nepotism,violence and terrorism and crass communalism? Is there a single Party which will not stoop to any devilish means to gain power? And is there a single Party which, once in power, will not try their very best to deny democratic rights to their critics and silence the opponents by mute force? Is there a single Party which can boast of a mass leader who can rise above sectarian or Party constraints?
And it is this percentage of voters, I believe, who, by voting for the lesser of the available devils or by showing their anger against incumbency, ultimately becomes the deciding factor in an election result.
To those of you who endorse the views expressed above, my request is this. STAND TALL AND BE COUNTED. Be bold enough to proclaim your contempt for the present leadership by REFUSING YOUR VOTE. Make apt use of this rare opportunity to make your voice heard loud and clear. MAKE YOUR PRESENCE FELT IN THIS ELECTION. You owe it to the democracy.
JAI-HIND.
Dr. V.C.Ravindran.
This article is posted by my dad, Dr. V.C. Ravindran.
