Eye on 2019, BSP educates people on voting machines

LUCKNOW: Even as the Mayawati-led BSP makes political overtures by aligning with regional outfits in other states, its ground level cadre in the backyard of Uttar Pradesh is gearing up for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
BSP sources revealed that not only have the booth level committees been restructured but the crucial bhaichara(brotherhood) committees, which play a key role in the party’s outreach to other communities, have been activated.The thrust of the party’s work, at present, is to educate people about the VVPAT voting machines, updating voters’ lists and cautioning people through the bhaicharacommittees about possible Hindu-Muslim polarisation before the elections.
Asenior party member said that in order to reach out to more people, the number of members to booth level committees has been increased from five to 23 this year. “There are about 1,300 votes in each booth, of which 700-800 show up for polling. If out of these 23 are our members, we are looking at roughly 250 votes at least in each booth,” he said. The party is in the process of finalising booth committees, sector committees and bhaicharacommittees within each sector. This work, said sources, is likely to be completed by November. Other than increasing BSP’s base on ground by adding new members, the party is focussing on two issues. One, said a party member, the bhaichara committees, comprising members of various communities, is holding meetings with voters to caution them against possible Hindu-Muslim unrest which it alleges BJP will try and instigate before the election.
Secondly, he added, BSP is educating voters on VVPAT machines. Having expressed its concern about EVM tampering during earlier polls, the party is now telling people what to do if they find their votes getting registered for some party during polling.