Candidates organising trips to pilgrimage sites to woo women voters
The practice has gained momentum particularly since the beginning of the Navratri festival on Monday. To the extent that many hopefuls have put up banners and flex boards in their respective wards, announcing free trips for female voters.
PUNE: Ahead of municipal elections, there is a growing trend of aspiring candidates across political parties wooing female voters by organising trips to popular pilgrimage sites such as Kolhapur, Tuljapur and Saptashrungi (Nashik district). The practice has gained momentum particularly since the beginning of the Navratri festival on Monday. To the extent that many hopefuls have put up banners and flex boards in their respective wards, announcing free trips for female voters. However, they have made Aadhar card details and contact numbers mandatory for those registering at their offices.
Confirming the trend, Nationalist Congress Party/NCP (Sharad Pawar/SP) city unit president Prashant Jagtap said, “It is true that aspiring candidates across parties are organising such trips — some to Tuljapur, Kolhapur, Nashik, and even city temples with bus facilities. This is not a good trend. In a democracy, votes should be sought on the basis of development work. Unfortunately, over the last few years, this practice of pleasing voters has emerged.”
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, requesting anonymity, said, “Such trips are openly organised with banners announcing them so it is no secret. But what is troubling is that some workers, who are not financially sound, are borrowing money to stay in the competition. It is sad to see them fall into debt just to organise these tours.”
Congress leader Arvind Shinde said, “Elections are becoming more and more expensive. Senior leaders never spent in this manner, but newcomers who want to carve out a niche in politics are resorting to it. Even members of the ruling party are involved in this.”
Satish Chavan from Warje, said, “I organised trips for women, mainly in the city. I hired four buses and organised visits to Chatushrungi, Padmavati, Taljai Mata and other temples. We got good response from the voters.”
Another such candidate on condition of anonymity said, “I don’t know whether this will help me get a ticket but such trips show voters and party leaders that I am serious about contesting. I planned to take at least 500 women, which means arranging around 15 buses, covering bus rentals, breakfast, and two meals. For me, it is worth the cost because it gives me a base of 500 women voters plus their families. Mostly, women from low-income groups are registering while there has been no response from housing societies.”
