Disappointed youth and first-timers vote ‘for the sake of it’ in Madhya Pradesh

The State has 22,34,861 first-time voters in these elections, as per the Election Commission data.

Sumaiya, 26, cast her vote at a polling station in Bhopal’s old city area on Friday when Madhya Pradesh went to polls for its 230 Assembly seats.

She has recently finished her studies in dietetics but has little hopes from the next government with respect to employment opportunities. “I have cast my vote because it is my right and duty but whoever comes to power won’t change much here. Both parties [the BJP and the Congress] are very similar in terms of their policies,” she told The Hindu.

Youth and first-time voters of Madhya Pradesh were targeted by leaders from both the BJP and the Congress, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The State has 22,34,861 first-time voters in these elections, as per the Election Commission data.

At a rally in Khandwa on November 5, Mr. Modi had asked the youth and the first-time voters to learn about the Congress rule in the State before 2003 from their elders.

“I will make a special request to the first-time voters and the youth. You have to be alert because you have not seen their regime and don’t know about their dangerous game,” the Prime Minister said, adding that the youth must vote not just for the next five years, but for their future over the next 25 years.

Mr. Modi also extended his greetings to first-time voters early on Friday before the polling began.

Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge also said on Friday, “We urge the youth who are voting for the first time to participate enthusiastically in this movement for change and vote. New venues of employment are waiting for you and you will be free from the recruitment scams of the State.”