Gurugram records a meagre 41.8% turnout for civic polls

Voters in Gurugram stayed away from the polling booths on Sunday as the city recorded a dismal turnout of 41.8% for its municipal elections as of 10pm — the lowest ever recorded in Gurugram, officials said.

- Leena Dhankhar

GURUGRAM: The counting of votes will begin on March 12 at 8am, and the results will be announced on the same day.

The elections to various municipal corporations, councils, and municipalities in Haryana were conducted peacefully, with no reports of violence or untoward incidents, Haryana's state election commissioner (SEC) Dhanpat Singh said.

Despite extensive campaigning by political parties and independent candidates, voter apathy and administrative mismanagement were cited as major reasons for the sluggish participation. Before this, 55.92% votes were polled in 2017 municipal elections.

Polling booths in high-rise societies and urban pockets recorded significantly lower turnout than rural and older city areas, continuing a trend of civic disengagement among condominium residents and plotted colony voters. Disillusionment with local governance and dissatisfaction with candidates further contributed to the poor voter response.

The cumulative turnout for the state was recorded at 46.6%.