Sankli's Silent Resistance: A Village's Boycott for Basic Rights

In the Anta Assembly constituency of Rajasthan, all but one resident of Sankli village boycotted the election, protesting decades of neglect in infrastructure. The villagers demand essential facilities, like accessible roads, and have repeatedly voiced their grievances to no avail.

On Tuesday, as voters lined up at polling booths across Rajasthan's Anta Assembly constituency, the village of Sankli stood in stark silence. Only a single vote was cast there, not due to voter apathy but as a protest against ongoing neglect by local authorities.

Sankli's 763 residents decided to boycott the bypoll to voice their discontent. They are frustrated with the lack of basic amenities, particularly during monsoon seasons when roads to nearby villages become impassable. 'We remain cut off from the outside world,' said Vinod Meena, a villager.

The neglect is evident even in the village's most somber moments, as mourners struggle to carry bodies along the village's muddy, broken paths to the cremation ground. Despite prior warnings to authorities, their grievances have been ignored. On polling day, the empty station underscored the depth of rural disillusionment with Indian democracy.

(With inputs from agencies.)