Hawker election chaos: Long queues, unfamiliar candidates

Voters waiting in queue

The first-ever election for hawker representatives on the Town Vending Committee (TVC) took place on Thursday, but voters faced long waits of two to three hours. Each voter had to choose at least 13 out of over 60 candidates, extending the process beyond general elections. Out of 32,415 eligible hawkers, only a 49 per cent voted, with many participating to avoid losing their licences. The Supreme Court has postponed the announcement of results until further notice.

The BMC set up multiple centres with three to seven booths each per ward. Voting began at 7 am, but by afternoon, only a few ballots had been cast. Many voters were frustrated. Ramchandra Gupta, who sells idli-vada near CST, said, "I voted early, but most candidates were unknown to me. The election was announced just two weeks ago, so candidates might not have had time to reach us."

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Shivprakash Gupta from Lokhandwala and Rajesh Gupta from Oshiwara felt similarly. He said, "We came because we were warned our licences would be revoked if we didn't vote." Suresh Lahane, who accompanied his mother, a licenced shoe stall vendor at Seven Bungalows, mentioned, "My mother was unfamiliar with the process and needed help from election officers inside the booth."

The TVC is crucial as it handles the allotment of licences, pitches, and overall regulation for hawkers. It includes one central committee and seven zonal committees, each with 20 members: 12 nominated and 8 elected by hawkers.

Suryakant Garade, a stall owner near Andheri station, said, "I stood in line for over two hours at D N Nagar Municipal School in Andheri West and was only halfway through." Sanjay Khande from Dadar Hawkers Sangharsh Samiti said, "At the Gokhale Road centre, the process was painfully slow. By 1 pm, only 70 votes had been cast at one booth." Monammad Amjad, who runs a garment stall on S V Road, Andheri, expressed hope for positive outcomes. "The BMC had given us a loan under the PM SWANIDHI scheme but didn't allow us to work. We hope these elections will bring positive results
for hawkers."

Santosh Kokat, the election returning officer at D N Nagar School, said, "In Zone 4, voters selected six members for the zonal committee and seven for the central committee from 67 candidates. The process took longer due to ballot papers. We've asked the BMC to arrange a strong room for the ballots." The centre had six booths for 2,470 voters, part of 67 booths citywide for 32,415 licenced hawkers.

Kiran Dighavkar, DMC of the BMC, added, "The BMC tried to present the matter in the Supreme Court on Thursday, but it wasn't considered. So, results will be delayed until further hearings." Less than 50 per cent hawkers took part in the election.

Zone-wise voter numbers
Zone 1 7,686
Zone 2 5,303
Zone 3 4,668
Zone 4 7,501
Zone 5 2,160
Zone 6 3,033
Zone 7 2,064
Total 32,415