Mangalore: More than 29,000 new voters will have a say in deciding the fate of the candidates for the Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha seat. Compared to the voters list of 2013 when the elections were held for Karnataka Assembly, the list has increased by nearly two per cent as on January 1, 2014. And the process of enrolling new voters is expected to start in the next few days.

In 2009, when the last general election was held, the constituency had 13,64,641 voters. In five years, the voters’ list has grown bigger by 1,65,430 voters or 12 per cent.

Mangalore City South accounts for the highest growth in the number of new voters. The list here has swelled by nearly 6,000 voters, accounting for a three per cent rise. There are more women in the additional list than men — keeping with the tradition of the region.
Candidates

Mangalore City South is one of the eight Assembly segments of Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha constituency, represented by the BJP’s Nalin Kumar Kateel. The Congress will decide its candidate through primary on March 9. Senior party leader B. Janardhana Poojary and Kanachur Monu are in the fray for the ticket.

One of the reasons for high growth in the constituency is that many of the applications for inclusion in the voters’ list during the Assembly elections could not be acted upon because of a technical glitch – a slowdown in the server.

By now, most of these applications and those that were received subsequently have been included in the list, said an official from the District Election branch in the office of the Deputy Commissioner.

“We have acted on all applications filed for inclusion, deletion and corrections that had been filed. No applications are pending. We will now be dealing with fresh applications,” said another official from the District Election branch.
Happy faces

Among the happy faces because of the empty ‘In’ tray at the EC office is a city-based advocate, whose application for transfer from Bantwal to Mangalore South assembly had been pending.

Her name did not figure in the electoral roll during the Assembly election, and was not hopeful of voting in the general elections, either.

But four months ago she got intimation from the office of Deputy Commissioner intimating about acceptance of the application, which was filed online. She now has the voter’s ID card, too.