No Road, No Vote: Banner Put Up By Locals Outside Amethi Village Ahead Of Lok Sabha Polls

Amethi, which is considered as a VVIP constituency, was represented by the Nehru-Gandhi family until Union minister Smriti Irani wrested the Lok Sabha seat in 2019.

Written by Shivanshi Srivastava March 19, 2024

Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, the locals in this Gauriganj tehsil have raised awareness of their difficulties by hanging a banner outside their village that reads, “no road, no vote”.

On Monday, the residents of Sarmeny village under the Jamo block raised chants outside the Purey Alpi Tiwari hamlet, warning others to boycott the next elections.

Amethi, which is considered as a VVIP constituency, was represented by the Nehru-Gandhi family until Union minister Smriti Irani wrested the Lok Sabha seat in 2019.

Gauriganj SDM Digvijay Singh on Tuesday said information about the villagers’ protest has been received and effort will be made to solve the problem following further investigation.

Omprakash Ojha, a resident of the hamlet, told reporters that there are seven small roads connecting the village to nearby areas but all of them are unpaved.

“Due to lack of access to the village, we have to perform the marriages of our sons and daughters elsewhere. Even bikes cannot move here during the rain. There is no drainage system,” Ojha said.

“There is no proper arrangement for drinking water. The scheme of providing tap water to every house under the Jal Jeevan Mission has not yet reached our village. Even the water tap pipeline under the scheme has not been laid here,” he added.

Another local Ram Abhilash said there has been no development in Sarmeny since independence. “We are continuously complaining but no one has given any thought to it. Now all of us have made up our mind that until our problems are not resolved, we will boycott the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.”

With the exception for a short while after Sanjay Gandhi was elected from Amethi in 1976, the Nehru-Gandhi family held the seat.

After winning the seat, Rajiv Gandhi was appointed prime minister.

Irani currently represents the constituency after defeating Rahul Gandhi of the Congress in 2019.

When the residents of Bhawanipur village in the Sangrampur development block here erected a banner bearing the words “no road, no vote” a week prior, the administration quickly went to the area to calm things down.

Also Read: Supreme Court to Hear Bail Plea of TMC Leader Anubrata Mandal: Unequal Treatment Raises Questions