Chirag Nagar locals, who fear displacement due to Anna Bhau Sathe memorial, exercise franchise despite declaring earlier that they would abstain
An aerial view of Chirag Nagar in Ghatkopar West
Residents of Chirag Nagar in Ghatkopar West, who claimed they would boycott the civic election as they were allegedly being forced to vacate their homes by the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA), opted to exercise their franchise after all on Thursday.
Anil Sathe, grandson of the folk poet, writer, and social activist Anna Bhau Sathe, told mid-day, “We realised that voting is our constitutional right and duty. Saying that we would boycott the poll would be disrespectful towards the Constitution itself. Hence, we chose to participate in the festival of democracy.”
Revealing the exact reason for locals’ change of heart, Sathe said, “A few days before the elections, we had a meeting amongst ourselves, and we came to the conclusion that we would vote. This also happened because, in a campaign speech, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that we would not be moved from our houses and the memorial for Anna Bhau would also be built in the same place, which is all we want at the end of the day.” Sathe added, “Almost all of us who are eligible to vote and have our voter IDs exercised our franchise. We hope whoever comes to power in the civic body listens to us and helps solve our issues.”
Denying that about 90 per cent of the residents want to move out, a claim made by an SRA official on the condition of anonymity, Sathe said, “There are people who did leave, but they were barely four or five of them. We have all come together to say in one voice that we won’t move. The people who left also want to come back.”
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