In Photos: Why Residents of Delhi's Katewara Village Boycotted MCD Elections

The village boycotted the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections on 4 November.

The village, which is part of the Nangal Thakran municipal ward in Northwest Delhi, boycotted the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections on 4 November.

(Ashna Butani/The Quint) 

"We did not want to vote because we were angry with all the parties. They have forgotten us," said 80-year-old Kapoor Singh, who has spent his life in Katewara village.

The village, which is part of the Nangal Thakran municipal ward in Northwest Delhi, boycotted the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections on 4 November. According to a report by Hindustan Times, a state election commission officer said that no resident voted in any of the three polling stations in the village. The village has around 3,150 voters. 

On 6 November, The Quint visited the village and found that residents' woes range from the state of drains and roads to the lack of job opportunities and schools nearby.

Kapoor Singh said, "The roads are difficult to walk on, that is why I need a stick." Like most others in the village, he was a farmer too. He has four children. He said, "There are no job opportunities. The children have to go out of the village to get jobs. They started farming for want of better options." 

Residents claimed that a few years ago, the only government school for girls was broken down because it did not have enough teachers. So, seven-year-old Pari said she has to travel to the next village, Qutabgarh, for school. Along with her mother, she takes a bus to school every day. The boys, however, go to school in the village itself. 

There are numerous open drains in the village. Residents say they fear that the children will fall in the drains during the monsoons. The drains are clogged, and the village gets flooded yearly. 

Raj Kumar, 65, said that the ceilings of the cremation grounds had fallen down years ago, and have never been repaired. "Nobody's last wish would be to get cremated in a place like this. There should be some dignity in death at least," he said.

Rashmi Lamba, 26, nurse, got married and moved to the village from Bawana 1.5 years ago. She told The Quint, "Bawana had much better facilities. The government ignores this village completely, starting from the roads to the parks." 

The residents said that even the village chaupal, was not built by any government body. Karnal Singh, 65, said, "The residents pitched in to build the chaupal. But part of the ceiling broke and fell. That is why no functions take place here. How many times can villagers contribute?" 

A park with a Delhi Development Authority (DDA) board, and a pond near it, have been neglected. The pond is full of stagnant sewage water. 

A group of men play cards in the park. There is nobody to take care of the parks, they claimed. They said that the children water the plants sometimes.

Rambir Singh (65), said that none of the elderly people in the village get any pension. He added, "every few years, an MLA comes to the village and makes promises of making better roads but that has not happened. That is why I did not vote." 

Anita, 60, and Poonam, 54, who are neighbors, said that they have fallen on the roads innumerable times. In the monsoons, the roads get flooded and it is even harder to walk on, without slipping.