Gandhinagar, April 25 (IANS) Gujarat Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) Jagdish Vishwakarma on Saturday appealed to citizens across the state to exercise their franchise in large numbers in the forthcoming local body elections, stressing that voting is a collective responsibility essential to strengthening democracy.

Speaking a day ahead of polling, Vishwakarma said that local self-government institutions form the foundation of democracy and urged citizens to participate enthusiastically in the electoral process.​

“Local self-government institutions are the foundation of democracy. Voting as an aware citizen is our sacred duty. Every citizen’s vote is important and foundational to strengthening democracy,” he said.​

Emphasising civic responsibility, he added, “When every citizen understands their responsibility and votes, democracy becomes more vibrant.”​

He called upon youth, women and first-time voters, along with all sections of society, to ensure maximum participation in the polls and contribute to reinforcing democratic traditions.​

Vishwakarma also invoked the slogan “Vote first, then refreshments”, urging voters to reach polling stations with their families on polling day.​

The elections, scheduled for April 26, will cover a wide network of grassroots institutions, including 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats across the state.​

In total, voting is being held for around 9,992 seats, spanning urban and rural bodies, with elections conducted across thousands of wards at different levels of local governance.​

Separately, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel appealed to citizens to participate in large numbers, calling for efforts to achieve 100 per cent voter turnout.​

In his message, Patel described voting as both a right and a sacred duty, and encouraged people to treat it as a festival of democracy.​

He urged voters to visit polling stations and motivate others, including family members and neighbours, to cast their votes, noting that “each vote contributes to the development of local communities”.​

–IANS

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