Sant Kabir Nagar, Uttar Pradesh:
Uttar Pradesh's first 'primary', a pet project of Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, for selection of Lok Sabha candidates was today marred by allegations of corruption.
The 'primaries' experiment by Mr Gandhi aims to empower grassroots workers by allowing them a say in the choice of candidates for the upcoming elections. As part of the exercise, a voters' list, comprising office-bearers of various units of Congress, is prepared.
But even before polling could begin for the Sant Kabir Nagar Lok Sabha seat in eastern UP, allegations of money power and manipulation with voters' lists started flying thick and fast.
"They have paid them Rs 3,000-7000 for their votes," said Afsar Ahmed, a former party MLA, who accused his rivals of buying votes. The party veteran also alleged that the entire exercise was far from being "free and fair".
Mr Ahmed was backed Shailendra Yadav, candidate and former MP, who dubbed the entire exercise as "bogus".
All the eight candidates for today's 'primary' were given seven minutes each to make their last political pitch before voting began. Upset with the party over alleged electoral malpractices, Azra Sultana, the lone woman candidate, boycotted the event.
When these allegations became public through the candidates' speeches, a team of Congress' returning officers interrupted them, asking the voters to use their own wisdom to make their choices.
To say voters' lists have been manipulated is wrong... voters are less because many of them were rejected because their neutrality was in doubt," said Prakash Joshi, the returning officer for this election.
Many have also questioned the logic of holding a primary in Sant Kabir Nagar, a seat which had its last congress MP way back in 1989.
But despite the charges of corruption, several still believe that the idea holds promise.
"I am glad Rahul Gandhi thought of us," said Shabri Bai, a party worker.
15 Lok Sabha constituencies in the country have been identified by the Congress for the pilot project where voters will exercise their franchise through ballot papers. The primaries have been introduced by Mr Gandhi as his larger plan of encouraging inner-party democracy and decentralisation of power.
The 'primaries' experiment by Mr Gandhi aims to empower grassroots workers by allowing them a say in the choice of candidates for the upcoming elections. As part of the exercise, a voters' list, comprising office-bearers of various units of Congress, is prepared.
But even before polling could begin for the Sant Kabir Nagar Lok Sabha seat in eastern UP, allegations of money power and manipulation with voters' lists started flying thick and fast.
"They have paid them Rs 3,000-7000 for their votes," said Afsar Ahmed, a former party MLA, who accused his rivals of buying votes. The party veteran also alleged that the entire exercise was far from being "free and fair".
Mr Ahmed was backed Shailendra Yadav, candidate and former MP, who dubbed the entire exercise as "bogus".
All the eight candidates for today's 'primary' were given seven minutes each to make their last political pitch before voting began. Upset with the party over alleged electoral malpractices, Azra Sultana, the lone woman candidate, boycotted the event.
When these allegations became public through the candidates' speeches, a team of Congress' returning officers interrupted them, asking the voters to use their own wisdom to make their choices.
To say voters' lists have been manipulated is wrong... voters are less because many of them were rejected because their neutrality was in doubt," said Prakash Joshi, the returning officer for this election.
Many have also questioned the logic of holding a primary in Sant Kabir Nagar, a seat which had its last congress MP way back in 1989.
But despite the charges of corruption, several still believe that the idea holds promise.
"I am glad Rahul Gandhi thought of us," said Shabri Bai, a party worker.
15 Lok Sabha constituencies in the country have been identified by the Congress for the pilot project where voters will exercise their franchise through ballot papers. The primaries have been introduced by Mr Gandhi as his larger plan of encouraging inner-party democracy and decentralisation of power.
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