Elections 2019: Jamia Nagar Youth Claims to be ‘First Voter’ Six Times in a Row

New Delhi: Amidst the apprehension of poor voting in Muslim majority areas because of the fasting month of Ramzan, this youth from Jamia Nagar locality dispelled the notion by being the first to cast his vote in his booth, travelling all the way from Pune to do so. What’s great about this, you might say. Well, this is the sixth time that this young man has been the first to cast his vote in his booth in East Delhi, he claims. Delhi voted on Sunday in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

The young techie - Sanjar Abdul Hafeez - claims he has been the "first voter" to cast his vote at his booth in East Delhi's Jamia Nagar for the past five elections. He has been doing so,  he says,  because he wants to make it a record for himself.

"After having sehri (pre-dawn meal) and performing subsequent fajr prayer, I reached my polling station at 6:30 am. It's my habit to vote first on the polling day. I feel very happy after exercising my right to franchise," the IT professional told Newsclick.

Claiming that he never fails to participate in this important exercise of democracy, Hafeez said he took a day off from the multinational company in Pune where he worked and rushed to Delhi to vote in 2012 municipal elections.

"I took late evening flight from Pune and reached Delhi. After casting my vote, I caught another flight the same day to go back to work. I did the same in the 2015 Delhi Assembly elections," he said.

Asked why he wanted to be the first to cast his vote, he said, "It gives me immense satisfaction. It is always fun to vote first and I want to make it a habit."

Expressing disappointment with those who prefer to stay at home on polling day, he says, "Those who don't vote do not have right to give lectures on governance."