People vote aginst divisive politics in Chandni Chowk

NEW DELHI: Chandni Chowk is one of the 7 Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi. Voting for Lok Sabha election in Delhi was held in a single phase. Voting in Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha constituency is in the sixth phase on May 12 and counting is on May 23.

Voting recorded till 6 pm was 62.69 per cent and the figure may slightly go up as polling continued at several places way beyond the deadline. Polling also started late on some booths while there were reports of EVM malfunctioning in different parts of the city.

While , in the 2014 election in Chandni Chowk, 76.15 per cent or 9,82,275 voters had exercised their franchise. Of the 25 contestants who were in the fray, 22 had lost their deposits.

After the delimitation of parliamentary constituencies in 2008, Chandni Chowk parliamentary constituency was divided into ten Vidhan Sabha segments namely Adarsh Nagar, Shalimar Bagh, Shakur Basti, Tri Nagar, Wazirpur, Model Town, Sadar Bazar, Chandni Chowk, Matia Mahal and Ballimaran.

In 2014 Lok Sabha election, Bharatiya Janata Party's Dr Harsh Vardhan had won the Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha constituency with a margin of 1,36,320 votes. Dr Harsh Vardhan had bagged 4,37,938 votes as against Aam Aadmi Party's Ashutosh who bagged the second spot with 3,01,618 votes. Congress leader Kapil Sibal was pushed to the third spot with 1,76,206 votes.

Ramzan, when Muslims observe a total fast, coincided with the polling in Delhi but did not seem to deter voters in the Chandni Chowk area of the old city, save in the early hours. However, as the day progressed, people came out to cast their votes and numbers started increasing in the evening.

Around 20 per cent of people living in the area are Muslims.

Chandni Chowk is one of the major markets in the city but it wore deserted look on Sunday, when it remains closed.

As the polling day fell of a Sunday, this could also account for the lesser numbers, said Mohammad Asif, a trader in Meena Bazar near the Jama Masjid. Meena Jasotani, 47, a resident of Chandni Chowk, said she voted for the development by the Centre. Communal discord also weighed on the mind of several voters.