BENGALURU: The Congress government will observe International Day of Democracy on September 15 at the banquet hall in Vidhana Soudha, with the slogan ‘My Vote, My Right’.
Social Welfare Minister Dr HC Mahadevappa said the state government’s slogan for democracy day has nothing to do with Lok Sabha Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Vote Chori’ campaign launched in Bengaluru, or ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in Bihar. “The fate, destiny and development of the country lie in electing the right person by exercising one’s franchise, a right given by the Constitution. Awareness is a continuous process to strengthen democracy,” he said.
On the Election Commission of India (ECI) insisting that Rahul Gandhi file an affidavit to support his allegation of vote theft, Mahadevappa said the Commission should take his statement into cognisance. “Rahul has brought vote theft to the notice of the ECI, and it is the duty of the commission to check what went wrong and protect the right of people for the success of democracy,” he stated.
In 2007, the UN General Assembly declared September 15 as International Day of Democracy. In 2023, the Karnataka government organised the reading of the preamble of the Constitution as a campaign. In 2024, history of sorts was created with a record 2,500-km human chain being formed from Bidar to Chamarajanagar, covering all 31 districts.
“This time, 10-15 persons will take out bike rallies from every district to create awareness on ‘My Vote My Right’. Competitions at the taluk level include debates on the slogan and will be held up to November 2025,” he informed.
Meanwhile, Mahadevappa defended the implementation of internal quota by the government by slicing 17 per cent quota for three groups, with 6 per cent for A (SC-Left), 6 per cent for B (SC-Right) and 5 per cent for C (Bhovi, Lambani, Korama and Koracha).
“Most of the SC people are happy with the government’s decision. Those who are not happy can approach the SC commission to be set up soon,” he said to a query on some SC communities staging protests, opposing the government’s decision.