DC Dr. K.V. Rajendra calls youths to come forward and participate in democratic process

Mysuru: Many efforts are on to increase youth voting and on getting young people registered. That’s a crucial component to driving electoral engagement. But it’s only half the battle as there is a need to ensure that registered youth actually go out and cast a ballot on the election day.

Though elections play a vital role in a system of representative democracy and they are the primary mechanism with which to implement the principle of popular sovereignty, many youths are not coming forward to register their names in the voter list.

In Mysuru district for example, though there are more than one lakh young voters, only 40,000 voters have come forward to include their names in the voter list. The data was revealed by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Dr. K.V. Rajendra at the National Voters’ Day organised by the District Administration and the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) at Kalamandira on Jan. 25.

“Earlier, to include a name in the voter list and carry out corrections, one had to fill up forms 6, 7 and 8 that were distributed at the booth level. “Now, youths and others can carry out these processes through Apps, conveniently from the comfort of their homes,” he said.

Youths reluctant

“Increasing reluctance among youths to participate in politics and exercise the right to vote is particularly alarming and amounts to a weakening of democracy. Therefore, it is imperative to reverse this trend and re-engage youths in the political and democratic process,” Dr. Rajendra added.

“The most obvious way to encourage youths to vote is by education and spreading awareness. In a democracy, every vote counts and it is important for the youths to know the value of their vote. The youths must vote to protect their fundamental rights, to celebrate democracy and to make their concerns heard. Before that they must enter their names in the electoral rolls and ensure that the voter IDs are error-free,” he said.

Principal District and Sessions Judge M.L. Raghunath said voting is a responsibility and everyone who is eligible to vote must exercise their franchise to establish a vibrant democracy. “The National Voters’ Day is celebrated to motivate voters and to educate them on their responsibilities besides giving voters’ ID cards to the new and young voters. If there is a larger and active participation, there will not be instances of poor voter turnout,” the District Judge added.

Right to elect representatives

“Democracy has given people the right to elect representatives and all eligible voters must exercise their right by actively participating and casting their votes. Voting is our responsibility and poll percentage of less than 50 percent shows that a sizable number of voters have not exercised their franchise. This should not happen in a democracy. Young people should vote to develop a habit of voting from the start and thus ensure high turnout in the future,” he opined.

Young people might have few resources to influence policy making and may further be handicapped by a perception that they are not mature enough to speak for themselves, or even to know what is good for them. “However, the ballot is a great equaliser. Everyone’s vote counts equally, even if there are vast disparities of resources. By voting, youngsters have the same ability as others to exercise political influence or pressure,” Raghunath said.  

Senior Civil Judge Devaraj Bhute, MCC Commissioner G. Lakshmikantha Reddy, ZP CEO B.R. Poornima, MUDA Commissioner G.T. Dinesh Kumar, DCP (Crime and Traffic) M.S. Geetha Prasanna, MCC Deputy Commissioner (Administration) M.K. Savitha and others were present. A painting competition was organised in which students from more than 17 colleges took part and the theme of the competition was the importance of voting.