Dance Of DemocracySUNDAY TIMES OF INDIA | MARCH 5, 2017

The Chief Election Commissioner or ElectionCommissioner holds office for a term of 6 years or the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier

UTTARPRADESHASSEMBLYELECTIONS

2017VITALSTATS

BJP stands for ‘Bahut Jhoot Paathshala’ and Modi is its principal. He has failed to deliver on promises - Randeep Surjewala | CONG SPOKESPERSON

As assembly polls coveringfive states enters its lastleg, the Election Commis-

sion looks back with satisfactionat the smooth and peaceful con-duct of the mammoth exercise,particularly in Manipur. ChiefElection Commissioner NasimZaidi spoke to Bharti Jain onissues of concern relating to thepolls as well as the larger debateon electoral reforms. Excerpts:

■In retrospect, do you thinkthe government should haveconsulted EC on Budget tim-ing? The government did not in-form us about the intendedtiming of the Budget. Welearnt of it through some com-plaint. I can only say it wouldhave been better if, after the en-forcement of model code ofconduct, the Commission waskept informed.

■But you took a lenient viewand did not interfere withthe Budget exercise.We examined the response re-ceived from the ministry of fi-nance and decided that weshould ensure that the five poll-going states are not influencedby any component of the Bud-

get. I think that worked well.

■ These elections are thefirst ones to be held after theSC judgment on religious ap-peals. Have parties and can-didates honoured the spiritof the order?The SC order stated that anymixing of religion, caste, etc,with the election campaign shallbe deemed corrupt practice.Now, a corrupt practice can onlybe challenged in a court. So, Ithink the impact of the SC judg-ment will be realised by the can-didates once the (election) proc-ess is complete and an electionpetition is filed.

■ What about ‘star cam-paigners’ who raised issueslike cremation grounds orsought votes by promising toprotect the minorities?

We received complaints againstfour-five major parties. A newphenomenon we noticed thistime was that many of these ob-jectionable comments weremade outside the ‘code of con-duct’ area. We could not havedealt with things spoken out-side the poll-going state. We alsoexamined whether outside thepoll-going area, anything wasspoken with reference to thepoll-going areas. After studyingall these things in totality we is-sued another advisory lastweek, covering all aspects. Ithink the advisory of commis-sion has been received well.

■ How do you view the Bud-get proposal to lower the capfor parties to declare cashdonations from Rs 20,000 toRs 2,000?EC stands for transparency infunding of political parties. Inthe existing law, collections byparties below Rs 20,000 remainanonymous and opaque. Withthis limit now proposed to becut to Rs 2,000, it will bringtransparency in a certain way.

■ What do you think of theproposal to allow donors tocontribute through bonds?

Once the commission receivesthe outline of the scheme for-mally, it will be evaluated fromthe angle of transparency vsanonymity. But, in general, anyscheme that does not reduce orrather tries to increase anonym-ity of the donors will not be inline with the commission’sstand. Donors’ details must beavailable.

■ What is your view on thecall for simultaneous polls? We have no formal communica-tion from the government onholding consultations regard-ing simultaneous polls. EC is ofthe view that relevant amend-ments in the Constitution mustbe made first, and certain im-ponderables like no-confidencemotion and imposition of Presi-dent’s rule, break in coalition al-liance and splits, debated.Thereafter, EC can, with theavailability of EVMs, financesand forces, conduct such an ex-ercise.

■ A few of your suggestionslike totaliser machines andmaking poll bribery aground for countermandingpolls have been turned downby the government.

As regards making bribery aground for countermandingelection, we have taken this upwith the government twice.The government stand was thatEC could deal with briberymatters under Article 324 andso status quo should be there.The commission has now goneon record (for a third time) stat-ing that there is a need toamend the RP Act to make brib-ery, based on evidence, aground for EC to countermandelections. The commission willcontinue to pursue it. On total-iser machines, the GoM thatevaluated the proposal did notendorse it. We have written tothe government again around10 days back, reiterating thatthe convenience of politicalparties cannot override theneed to ensure secrecy and pro-tection of voters.

■ Do you agree with the con-tention of Arvind Kejriwalthat by stopping him fromraising the issue of bribingof voters, EC is encouragingthe offence of bribery?If someone wants to criticiseus for doing the right thing, weleave it to him and the people atlarge to judge.

‘Would’ve been better had webeen informed of Budget date’

Varun Gandhi | He joined BJP the under influ-ence of Atal and Advani. However, his uneasy ties with the present BJP leadership is no secret. He was dropped from the BJP star cam-paigners’ list for the first two phases. Although he found a place in the list for the next two phases, Varun didn’t even go to his constituency Sultanpur to campaign

Dimple Yadav | She started off as a reluctant politician when she became an MP five years ago. How-ever, her metamor-phosis, especially during the family feud in which she emerged as a pillar of strength for her husband Akhilesh Yadav — has been com-mendable. In the campaigning, she has emerged as an astute speaker with befitting repartee to rival stalwarts

Keshav Maurya | He was given the charge of UP unit just before the crucial state elections and

Maurya has proved his ‘promoters’ in the party right. The Phoolpur MP with a VHP background

has been one of the most visible BJP faces during these elections

Yogi Adityanath | The firebrandGorakhpur BJP MP was lying low after the party did badly in the 2014 polls where he was the star campaigner. Earlier, he would mostly restict himself to camapigning in eastern UP. But, this time the party used him extensively in the Muslim-dominated western part to raise issues like triple talaq, cow slaughter and love jihad

Naseemuddin Siddiqui | In the past, BSP’s most prominent Muslim face would campaign under the shadow of the party supremo. But, this time he has been making his presence felt

with his solo rallies. His son was made party in charge of the western region to mobilise Muslim voters and he emerged as one of the bus-iest campaigners of the party

Anupriya Patel | Although her party Apna Dal is a minor player in the NDA, she is play-ing a big role in attracting non-Yadav OBC votes to alliance partner BJP in Varanasi and surrounding districts. Despite a bitter split from her mother and party president Krishna

Patel, Anupriya has managed to remain a confi-dant of top BJP leaders

FADEDOUT Star campaigners of yore who were not visible this time...

Mulayam Singh Yadav | Netaji would be the pivot to SP campaign till 2014 Lok Sabha elections. But, post family feud and his removal from the SP presidentship, he seems to have lost interest. Campaigned only in Jaswant-nagar and Lucknow Cantt, the seats of his brother and daughter-in-law

Amar Singh | His lyrical and colourful speeches used to be a top draw at rallies. But, just before these polls, he was caught in the vortex of intra-party war and was sacked. So, he is found mostly on TV channels, unleashing his vitriolic attack on Ram Gopal Yadav, Azam Khan and Akhilesh

Beni Verma | He used to be a star campaignerboth for SP and Congress. But, his proximity with Mulayam probably made him irrelevant in the new SP regime. First his plea for a ticket to his son went unheeded and then his services were not solicited for the the party campaign. This must be the first elections when Beni didn’t address a rally

Shivpal Yadav | He was virtual number twoin the party till 2012 elec-tions, taking care of the nitty-gritty of the party’s poll preparedness. But after a bitter spat with nephew Akhilesh Yadav,his standing has taken a

severe beating. He was not on the

party’s star campaign-ers’ list and remained confined to

his own seat

MM Joshi | He lost some prominence when he was shifted from his Varanasi seat to Kanpur in 2014 LS polls. But, when Joshi was included in the BJP’s

‘margdarshak mandal’along with Advani, the signals were clear. This time, the party used him only in Kanpur

Maneka Gandhi | PilibhitMP has always been a very busy campaigner for the BJP, especially in west UP. But Maneka confined herself to Pilibhit this time. The party didn’t consider her for campaigns in other parts of the state

They made their presence felt at elections rallies...BURNING BRIGHT

Son, nephew of BSP MLA bookedTwo agents of SP and two of BJP

were allegedly kidnapped from outside booth number 145 in Sahjanwa during voting on Saturday. An FIR has been lodged and the accused are yet to be arrested. According to reports, BJP agents Shiv Govind Singh and Himanshu Singh and SP agents Nityanand Yadav and Vikas Yadav were allegedly forced into a four-wheeler by Himanshu Singh, the son of BSP candidate and sitting Paniyara MLA GM Singh, along with his cousin Kaushal Singh. They were taken to a house and locked. Shiv Govind told police that the accused had threatened them and asked them to stay away from the booth till 5pm.

Man who sent lewd texts to leader from same party? The man who had allegedly sent a

lewd message to BJP functionary Shaina NC has been identified as an Jayantkumar Singh alias Sinku who claims to be a BJP activist from Varanasi. Last month, Shaina had lodged a complaint against Singh for sending her “vulgar and obscene messages” on her cellphone. The police had registered an offence of outraging the modesty of a woman besides slapping sections of the Information Technology Act. Shaina has asked for strict punishment against the accused.

Shehnai recital welcomes PM in Varanasi To welcome Prime Minister Narendra

Modi, the local unit of BJP Alpsankyak Morcha organised ‘Shehnai recital’ while people showered flower petals on Modi. The unit had also decorated the Muslim dominated Madanpura locality with party flags and balloons.

POLLMAAL

A model polling booth in Azamgarh

In a first, a teerth purohit (pilgrimpriest) is contesting elections fromMirzapur’s Sadar seat. Fielded by

Bharatiya Janata Party, the candidateRatnakar Mishra is no less than theparty’s chief priest.

Having performed religious cere-monies for all top guns in BJP, fromLal Krishna Advani to Amit Shah, 58-year-old Mishra is said to have per-formed special pujas for Prime Mini-ster Narendra Modi to ensure his victory in the 2014 Lok Sabha elec-tions. His importance in the party isevident from the fact that he was a spe-cial invitee at the PM’s swearing in ce-remony.

The Vidhan Sabha ticket is a re-turn gift from the ‘jajmaan’ (clients)including home minister RajnathSingh, Uma Bharati and Amit Shah.Locals feel his presence and populari-ty in the RSS paid off. “I have been as-

sociated with the shakha since 1977,”said Mishra.

But the fifth generation Brahminpanda claimed he entered poll watersfor the sake of Mirzapur. “Vindhya-

chal is the core of all positive energiesin the world but it doesn’t seem to be-nefit from it. Mirzapur has lagged be-hind badly in the race for developmentbecause of regional parties’ indiffe-rence. I promise to give the city its longpending due,” Mishra told TOI.

He claimed he had readied a road-

map for Mirzapur’s development.“The roads in the city are in a bad sta-te which affects public life and leavesa bad impression on the tourists. Gi-ven a chance, I shall get new roads bu-ilt. Completion of the Bhitauli bridgeand revival of the brass industry sub-sequent priorities. I shall also try toget Vindhyachal an official touristdestination status,” he said.

Mishra has been challenged by sit-ting Samajwadi Party MLA KailashChaurasia and BSP’s Parvez Khan.Locals feel there is a triangular fight

on the seat.“Ratnakar may have to face diffi-

culties from enemies within the party.Actually, the name of BJP candidateManoj Jaiswal who lost in 2012 Vid-han Sabha polls was doing the roundsbefore the official announcement forMishra came in. So, some workers aredemoralised. Besides, he is a first-ti-mer,” said Shubh Kumar, a school tea-cher.

Kailash is known for his people’sconnect despite strong anti-incum-bency. Parvez Khan, popular for hisclean image, may upset caste-religionequations on the seat which can makethings difficult for Mishra. As per dis-trict election office, there are 3.35 lakhvoters on the Sadar seat.

In 2012, SP won the constituencyby 22,299 votes during assembly elec-tions. Chaurasiya from SP bagged69,099 votes followed by Rang NathMishra of BSP who got 46,800 votes.The voter turnout was 56.48%.

Priest enters fray to change BJP’s fortunesShailvee.Sharda@timesgroup.com

DIVINE CONNECT: BJP’s Mirzapur Sadarcandidate Ratnakar Mishra is no less thanthe party’s chief priest

TOI

Nawal Singh was a Si-karwar Rajput beforehe converted and beca-

me Deendar Khan, a well-bu-ilt Mughal warrior. An adop-ted son of Mughal emperorAurangzeb, the legacy of De-endar Khan is alive in Dil-darnagar, a town dominatedby Muslim pathans in Ghazi-pur, after three centuries.

About 45 families in Dil-darnagar, which trace theirlineage to Deendar, coexistwith Hindu pattidars—theRajputs who did not convertduring the Mughal reign. Thevillage is a symbol of Hindu-Muslim bonhomie. Commu-nal issues like ghar wapsi, lo-ve jihad, and kabaristan-shamshaan remarks have fai-led to make inroads here.

Deendar’s ancestors hai-led from Samhauta village inKaimur district of Bihar,about 45 km from Ghazipur.Pattidar Shivji Singh, 82, aretired school headmaster,lives in Samhauta. “We longto be with our extended fami-

ly in Ghazipur. We have ma-ny scriptures and docu-ments which establish that

Nawal was picked from Sam-hauta in the 17th century by acommander of the Mughalarmy and taken to Lahore.Nawal converted and latersettled in Dildarnagar,which was then a Muslimsettlement,” shares Shivji.

Both Muslim and Rajputfamilies in Dildarnagar are

in possession of various do-cuments written in Urdu andPersian, including a letter ofadoption of Nawal signed bythe Emperor Aurangzeb.

Nasim Raza Khan is a10th generation descendantof Deendar Khan. He showsbooks and documents on fa-mily’s history. “We acceptedIslam and practise it. But atthe same time we equally re-spect Hindu religious beli-efs. Our ceremonies are notheld unless Hindu pattidarsfrom Samhauta are taken in-to confidence,” says Nasim.

Village pradhan Moham-mad Ehsan Ahmed, 45, so-ught a museum in the name

of Deendar in the villagewhich has a population of35,000.

The museum was sanc-tioned by Om PrakashSingh, local MLA and tou-rism minister in SP govern-ment. It will be built on a mo-und believed to Deendar’serstwhile kothi.

Away from communal strife,a Mughal-Rajput bonding

Shalabh@timesgroup.com

Nasim Raza Khan, a 10th gener-ation descendant of DeendarKhan, a Rajput who converted toIslam in the 17th century

TOI

Ballia: Former minister andBSP candidate from Phephnain Ballia, Ambika Chaudha-ry’s son Anand was arrestedon charges of attacking the re-sidence of SP candidate San-gram Singh during polling onSaturday. The district witnes-sed 58% turnout.

The seven seats in Balliahad a triangular fight with SPand BSP facing a strong resis-tance from the BJP. WhileChaudhary had joined BSP af-ter Akhilesh Yadav droppedhim from the SP list, anotherSP rebel Narad Rai has been fi-elded by BSP from Ballia. Ak-hilesh loyalist Ram GovindChoudhary is vying fromBansdih where BJP rebel Ke-taki Singh might cause an up-set for Bharatiya Samaj Partypresidnt Om Prakash Rajb-har’s son.

AmbikaChaudhary’sson booked

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

The same holds true forDeoria where votingpercentage went up

from 51.88% in 2012 to54.89% this year, register-ing a rise of over 3%. Mau,from where gangster-turn-ed-politician Mukhtar An-sari and his son Abbas arecontesting on a BSP ticket,there was a rise of 2.65% invoting. The east UP district,which recorded 56.10% in2012 witnessed voting per-centage going up to 58.75%this time and is likely to in-crease further, ECI said.

Ballia too recorded55.57% voting, which washigher by 2.67% comparedto 2012 assembly electionswhen 52.90% voting wasregistered. In one of thebooths in Baria village ofBallia, voters boycottedpolling to prostest against

no development work donein their area. In Azamgarh,parliamentary constituen-cy of SP patriarch Mu-layam Singh Yadav, votingpercentage went up from54.10% in 2012 to 56.38%, arise of 2.28%.

In 2014, the said assemb-ly segments in Azamgarhhad recorded 55.27% vot-ing. Kushinagar too saw arise in voting percentage-—from 56.74% in 2012 to58.08% this year, a rise ofover 2014 Lok Sabha elec-tions when the segments inKushinagar recorded55.78%.

The sixth phase com-prised a total electorate of1.72 crore of which 94.7 lakhwere male and 78.06 lakhwere female voters. Asmany as 635 candidateswere in the fray in this pen-ultimate phase of UP as-sembly elections.

Polling boycottedat Ballia booth

�Continued from P 1

MIRZAPUR

DILDARNAGAR (GHAZIPUR)

It is said that a man is known byenemies he keep. Altaf Ansari’senemy, a man struggling to repre-

sent Mau Sadar assembly, is a drea-ded don. On Saturday, it was for thesecond consecutive time Altaf wasin fray for Mau as SP candidate, aga-inst Mukhtar Ansari.

Around 8am, Chotteylal Khush-waha, a businessman out to cast hisvote, said “Absence of a BJP candi-date has taken fun out of the pollbattle and it will be a one-sided fight,though Altaf has a lot to improve onhis performance.” Lodged in judici-al custody at Lucknow prison,Mukhtar won the seat four timeswith or without any party’s supportand was hopeful of a fifth term onBSP’s ticket.As the sun moved west,queues at polling stations in conges-ted localities kept getting longer.Since 1980, pollsters in Mau city ha-ve been sending only Muslim MLAsto Vidhan Sabha to raise their voice.

Owner of multiple handloom

units, Altaf Ansari was seen outsi-de a polling booth at Mirzahadipuraat 11.30am. He had covered 11pollingstations by then. “Mukhtar foughtfor the party founded by his brother,

Quami Ekta Dal and secured 70,131votes in 2012. I came third with54,069 votes. BSP candidate had se-cured 64,306 votes. But this time the

equation has changed and peopleare with Akhilesh Yadav. ThoughBJP had been pitching about clam-ping Mukhtar Ansari, the party sur-prisingly did not field a candidateagainst him,” said Altaf, claiminghe had better odds in the changedscenario.

In Mau , Ansari Vs Ansari makesthis election plot interesting

Shalabh@timesgroup.com

Samajwadi Party leader Altaf Ansarigreets voters in Mau

TOI

MAU SADAR

From security guards to randomvoters, BSP candidate Abbas

Ansari shook hands with and spoke toas many as he could on his way to thepolling booth on Saturday morning.There was no mistaking the humilityof the 25-year-old son of jailed donMukhtar Ansari as he produced hisidentity card before going in to vote.Speaking in Bhojpuri, Abbas praisedguards for their hard work whileasking elderly voters, “Amma, vote dina?” or, “Aap theek hain?” Abbas’smajor rival is Fagu Chauhan of the BJP

Amma, vote di na, asksAbbas in Ghosi