Get to the polling booth early on February 16 so that no bogus voter gets a chance to impersonate you.
The politicians are appealing to voters to exercise their franchise during the early hours of the day. A big chunk of voters turn up late at booths, leaving scope for bogus voting, they said.
"The State Election Commission (SEC) doesn't have time to correct voters' list. Therefore, electorates should see to it that they reach the polling station during early hours of the day so that no one impersonates and casts vote in their name," said Shital Sutar, Congress candidate from ward number 81 (Prabhat Colony, Santa Cruz).
The Bombay high court recently questioned the SEC on the measures it was taking to curb bogus voting.
"Ahead of polls, agencies distribute fake identity cards. An aware citizen can help stop such practices by reaching the polling station early," said Suprada Phaterpekar, contesting on a Shiv Sena ticket from ward number 146 (Subhash Nagar, Chembur).
Vishwanath Maske, a BJP rebel, said that allowing ration cards as identity proof can lead to bogus voting. "How would I know if a person possessing ration card is a genuine holder? Hence, it is always better that voters turn up early to avoid impersonation," said Maske, an Independent from ward number 102 (Mulund).
He said the decision to set up polling station at housing societies will help curb instances of bogus voting. NCP candidate from ward number 171 (Sangam Nagar) Niyaz Vanu, said parties can prevent bogus. "If those distributing voters' slips are appointed polling agents, they would know if an electorate is on the list or not.
Deterrent message needs to be sent so bogus voters won't dare reach polling stations," Vanu added.
NGOs too urged people to come out early and vote. "Candidates know the areas where their votes come from. So, they take disadvantage of the absence of non-voters by encouraging impersonators," said Sharad Kumar, trustee of AGNI.
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