Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Sunday, 12 May, expressed his regret at having been unable to cast his vote in his registered district of Rajgarh in Madhya Pradesh.
“I regret that I could not reach Rajgarh to cast my ballot. Next time, I will ensure that my vote is registered in Bhopal,” Singh told ANI.
Rajgarh is 130 km away from state capital Bhopal where Singh is contesting the Lok Sabha polls against BJP's Pragya Singh Thakur.
Singh had been visiting various polling stations in Bhopal throughout the day to track the voting, sources told ANI, and the two-time Chief Minister was unable to make it to Rajgarh in time to cast his own vote.
He was also seen earlier in the day at a temple. When asked about casting his vote, he said, "I will see. I will try to reach."
Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan took a dig at Singh skipping the voting, saying that he had done a remarkable thing.
“He was so afraid that he did not go to cast his vote. He kept roaming around in Bhopal’s polling. In a democracy, voting is our fundamental duty. If a person who has been Chief Minister for 10 years does not vote, his feelings towards a democracy can be understood clearly,” Chouhan said, reported ANI.
Chouhan added that he felt that Singh had no faith in Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath’s administration, which is why he himself was roaming around during the polling in Bhopal.
BJP's Amit Malviya tweeted that Singh was nervous and claimed that he was struggling against his opponent.
When asked if he was indeed nervous, Singh said, "No, no, not at all", according to NDTV.
The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister also urged people to exercise their franchise in large numbers. "Go in large numbers and cast your vote. Vote without fear," he said.
(With inputs from ANI and NDTV.)
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