When 27-year-old Rifa went to vote in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections on Tuesday, she had read up on her local candidates and was eager to cast her vote.
But just four hours later, the visible mark of her participation had almost disappeared. Like many others, Rifa said that this time, a marker pen was used instead of the usual indelible ink.
“It’s a matter of concern for me as voting is my responsibility and my right,” she told The Quint. “The polling booth official had 3 markers next to them which looked like regular markers, there was no symbol on them. After leaving the booth, I was fidgeting with my finger and realised its fading. Four to five hours later, it was almost completely gone, just with water.”
As Maharashtra voted in 29 municipal corporations on Tuesday, including the high-stakes BMC polls, voters across the state have raised similar complaints about the ink used to mark their fingers after voting.
Several voters told The Quint that instead of the traditional indelible ink, officials used marker pens that could be easily removed with water, acetone, sanitiser, or nail polish remover. Political party representatives, meanwhile said they were not informed about any change in the ink being used this time.