Voter Ids in Delhi get 7,000 homeless voters, Delhi, 7,000 homeless get voter IDs in Delhi , Delhi assembly election 2013, Voter for Delhi poll, Delhi news, Voter Ids, Voter Card, BJP , congress.

Voter Ids in Delhi get 7,000 homeless voters.

NEW DELHI: Ali Hussain, a disabled beggar, struggles hard to cross the busy road on his tricycle rickshaw, his wife Ummati by his side. Stopped, he pulls out a crisply laminated voter identity card from a tattered pouch hanging from its handlebar. It is his "pehchaan card", he informs with a smile.

Indeed, the card is a route to empowerment for the man whose address on the voter ID card mentions the spot where he lives near Nizamuddin dargah. The office of the chief electoral officer has so far enrolled 7,249 from among the city's large homeless population estimated to be over 75,000 (though some place the count at one lakh plus) and the numbers are expected to grow further before enrolment closes for the 2013 assembly polls.

Watching Hussain display his card, homeless men and women gather around him. Many here have acquired voter ID cards over the last few months while others are waiting for their turn. As the homeless clamour for a chance to tell their stories of how they acquired their voter ID cards, the excitement is palpable. For the document is the source of their new-found identity and they say it will protect them from policemen who often chase them away.

For many, the assembly polls will bring their first exposure to exercising their franchise though when asked whether or not they know how important it is to have the right to vote some drew a blank.

Women brought out election cards from torn purses and folds of dupattas. Shahnaz Begum, who runs a small shop under a plastic sheet secured to logs on the roadside, says she now hopes she can flash it to stop the police from evicting her and taking away the sheet. The disabled woman, who cannot walk, subsists on sale of knick-knacks. Her husband, too, shows off his voter ID card. For most, the card is about survival.

But Julka Khatoon, another homeless person, said the card will also get them "respect". "Jab hum kaam mangtey hain toh log humein bhaga detey hain. Par ab is pehchaan se hum izzat se kaam mang saktey hain (When we ask for work, people shoo us away. But now we can seek work with dignity)," she said.

While awareness about the voting process and voter centres is still lacking, these first-time voters have some knowledge and insight. They know the names of the area MLA, councillor and local leaders.

On the enrolment process, special CEO Shurbir Singh said enrolment of homeless is a special focus this time around as inclusion of marginalized is a priority for the Election Commission of India. "We are also planning to tie up with NGOs for awareness drives for this segment," he said.

source:TOI

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